Forget Me Not
by Cattie V
Summary: When former companions of the Doctor wake up on the days when they first met him, they set on a journey to find  him. But things get complicated when they start to forget.  Book one of Remembrance. Spoilers for series 5.
1. 1941, the Height of the London Blitz

_Disclaimer: Doctor Who is the property of the BBC. I do not pretend to lay claim to any portion of it or its characters. _

Chapter 1: 1941, the Height of the London Blitz

The ground shook and Captain Jack's eyes flew open and he bolted up right, looking around him in confusion. He knew, or at least he was fairly certain, that he had fallen asleep in a hotel suit on a luxury cruise spaceship orbiting the planet Alpha Centuri in the year 2010. Yet, here he was clearly awake in a small barracks in what appeared to be the 1940s.

It took his mind a couple of seconds to process this, but it soon dawned on him that he had been here before. This is were he had stayed when he was posted here during WWII...the first time. "What the hell?" he muttered to himself. What had he had to drink the night before? He certainly didn't remember having that much and what he did have had not been that strong.

He pinched himself. Nope. It wasn't a dream, that much Jack was sure of. What was going on? It didn't make sense. Had he been kidnapped? No, that didn't make sense either. For one thing, where the guards? Besides, what sort of kidnappers would hold someone hostage during the Blitz?

Jack's eyes roamed the room, searching from sort of clue as to what was happening. Nothing. Then his eyes spotted a calendar on the far wall. He peered closely at it. He frowned. The date...why was today's date so familiar?

The ground shook again and Jack found himself being thrown to the floor. He groaned and got up. He moved to where he remembered the bathroom to be, and looked in the mirror, certain that he had a bruise on his head. What he saw caused his jaw to drop in surprise. He was young...well, younger.

Several years seemed to have just vanished from his face. This was just getting weirder and weirder. Jack was starting to freak out. He shook his head. _It's simple,_ he tried telling himself, _you just traveled back in time and you don't remember doing it. It's no big deal! _But Jack knew that it was a big deal. He rushed back to the other room and cast another glance at the calendar and then he knew. Today was the day that he first met the Doctor and Rose.

Jack noticed a clock on the wall and he studied it carefully. It would be another three hours before he spotted Rose hanging from a barrage balloon. He shook his head, desperately trying to remember exactly what he had been doing at this time and on this day.

Just then Jack heard the sound of foot steps echoing down the hall and then he suddenly remembered that he and Algie would be entering the room in a matter of seconds. Jack spun around looking wildly for some place to hide; it would not do for his younger self to see him. His whole time line would go up in smoke and if there was one thing Jack had learned from the Doctor, it was that one couldn't change their own time line, but it was too late. The door opened.

"Jack!" Jack took a deep breath and slowly turned around, expecting to see his younger self and Algie standing behind him, but instead he saw only Algie. "There you are! I've been looking all over for you. I thought you said, you'd join us for a game of poker. What happened, old chap?"

Jack just started at him. He felt himself getting colder and colder each second. This could not be happening! Had he been wrong? No, he clearly remembered going to the game and coming back with Algie. If there wasn't an younger Jack Harkness with him...

Now, Jack knew a lot about time travel. As a former Time Agent and then as a companion of the Doctor he had done plenty of it. But all those times, his own time line had not been effected, but now...now, Jack realized that he had not simply traveled back in time, he had traveled back on his own time line. Was that even possible?

"I say, Jack," say Algie peering at him in concern, "are you alright? You like ill." Jack shook his head and but on his most charming smile.

"I'm fine, Algie, and I'm sorry about missing the game...but...um...something came up at the last minute."

Algie frowned, puzzled. "What?"

"Something important...and private, Algie. I'm afraid, I can't discuss it with you." Algie opened his mouth to ask more questions when the door opened and more of Algie's old friends and comrades in arms entered the room.

There was a general chorus of greetings and Algie's question as to why Jack hadn't joined them for the poker game was repeated. Jack gave the same answer, but refused to say more. In truth, what could he say? No one would believe him anyway.

The next few hours passed while the others all talked and shared jokes. They tried to get Jack to join them, but Jack was not in the mode. His mind was far away. He was now absolutely certain that he had gone back on his own time line, as impossible as that sounded but how?

There was only person who could possibly answer his question: The Doctor, but that presented a new problem. The Doctor would not know him, so how would he trust him? It had taken the Doctor some time to warm up to him the first time they met, what would make this any different? Then suddenly Jack remembered the time. He looked at the clock. It was time for him to meet Rose.

He jumped up so suddenly that the others all stopped talking and looked at him. "Jack?" said Algie. "Are you alright?" Instead of answering, Jack just grabbed his binoculars from out of his pocket and went to the window. Rose would be there and he would save her just like he had last time and then, just like last time, she would lead him to the Doctor.

There was one problem though: Rose wasn't there. She was not hanging from the rope of a loose barrage balloon, in fact, there was no balloon there at all. Jack blinked. Was he too early? Or, a lump rose to his throat, was he too late? He sincerely hoped not.

A mental image of Rose falling to her death came to him and he bit back a cry. He prayed silently and then cast another glance at the clock. He was neither early or late...he was right on time. He looked back outside. Still no Rose and still no balloon. Jack felt the world falling out from under him.

"Jack?" He felt a hand on his shoulder. Algie. "Are you alright?" He didn't answer. Instead he spun around and rushed out of the room. He was down the stairs and out of the building in no time.

What was happening? This was wrong...very wrong! For only the third time in his life, Jack felt like breaking down crying. He was trapped in his past with no Doctor and no Rose. What he was he to do?

He knew what he had to do. He would find his ship...then he would do whatever it took to find his friends. The Doctor and Rose, right now, no one was more important to him then them. He had to find them...he _would_ find them.

He remembered that he had parked his ship by Big Ben and he quickly made his way there. He was not more than a block or two away when he froze. Standing in his path was a small child, a boy no more than six years old. Normally Jack this would not have bothered Jack in the slightest, but this boy was wearing a gas mask. "Are you my mummy?"

_Idiot!_ Jack cursed. He had been so focused on finding the Doctor and Rose that he had completely forgotten what had happened after he met them. All of his memories of this time came back to him and knew that he would have to put off finding his friends...for now.

Right now he had more important matters to deal with. This was, he recalled guiltily, his fault and he had to fix it. He had to undo the damage that the nanogenes had unintentionally caused. He had to set things right. He also had to stop a bomb. How he was to do all this without the Doctor and Rose, he had no idea, but he had to try. He was Captain Jack Harkness, a former Time Agent, a former companion of the Doctor, and he had to do this...alone. It was what the Doctor would want and it was for his and Rose's sakes that he would fix it.


	2. London, 2005

_Disclaimer: I wished I owned Doctor Who, but alas! I don't!_

Chapter 2: London, 2005

_Beep! Beep! _ Rose Tyler groaned and without even bothering to open her eyes, reached over and hit the snooze button on her alarm clock. "Five more minutes." she muttered. Then her eyes flew open as she remembered that she hadn't set her alarm clock the night before.

Then her alarm clock was forgotten as Rose realized that she was in her room, her old room. The room she used to have when she and her mum were still living in the other universe. Her old room that she hadn't been in for years.

Rose wondered if she were dreaming, but there was an awful feeling of reality about it that assured that she wasn't and that was unquestionably back in her old room. A flood of emotions hit her and Rose was just too overwhelmed and confused to deal with them right now.

How could she be here? It just wasn't possible. The wall between the universes had closed and travel between them was impossible. Yet, not only had she, with no reasonable explanation, traveled between universes, but she had also come back to her old home.

Rose tentatively threw back the covers and slowly got out of bed. Her eyes scanned the room for any hint, any sign at all of how she had gotten here, but there was nothing at all. She sighed. Nothing made any sense.

For reasons that she could not explain, Rose felt a sudden chill. She shivered, but not with cold. Something was wrong, very wrong. She shouldn't be here. She couldn't be here!

"Rose?" startled, Rose turned to see her mum, Jackie, standing in the doorway. One look at her face and Rose knew things were about to get much more complicated. Jackie looked...different. She was more careworn than she had been for a while now, yet at the same time she looked younger.

Younger. That one word turned Rose's world upside down. It couldn't be...could it? "Mum," said Rose urgently, "this is going to sound like a stupid question, but what today's date?"

"The 26th of March." said Jackie, starting at her daughter intently. She frowned and Rose could see that Jackie was certainly puzzled by her question, but Rose knew she had to ask.

"And the year?" Rose pressed.

"2005." said Jackie. "Rose? Are you feeling alright?" Rose had suddenly grown very pale and Jackie thought she was going to faint.

2005. Rose did not know how, but one way or another, she had waken up in her own past. 2005. 26th of March, 2005.

Rose blinked. She didn't know why, but she knew that the date was important. _Think, Rose, think!_ 26th of March, 2005. Why did that day sound so familiar? Rose's eyes widened as she realized that it was the day that her life had changed forever...the day that she had first met the Doctor.

All of her fears drained away and were replaced with a sudden hope. Had fate really granted her a second chance? It sounded almost too good to be true. The Doctor. How her heart leaped at the very thought of him.

True, this would the be the first regeneration she had met, but what of that? He was still the Doctor. He was still the man...or rather Time Lord, that she had fallen in love with and now she would get to see him again!

"Are you alright?" Jackie repeated, breaking into Rose's thoughts. "Maybe you should home and not go into work today."

"No!" said Rose quickly. Jackie jumped back in surprise. "I mean...I'm fine, Mum. Honestly. I'll be fine. No need to worry about me." Rose smiled, hoping to assure her mother. Jackie didn't look convinced, but she let the matter drop.

Rose felt greatly relieved when Jackie left the room. As she dressed, Rose's mind went over all her memories of that first meeting. She froze. Wilson. The chief electrician. He had been killed by the shop-window-dummies.

Rose's first instinct was to try and save him, but then she remembered what had happened when she had tried to save her own dad. The reapers. Even the Doctor hadn't been able to do anything to defeat them. But surely that was different? That time she had merely traveled back in time, but this...this time she had somehow gone back on her own time line. Didn't that mean that Wilson's death hadn't happened yet?

Rose was a little confused and unsure as to how to proceed on that score. She sighed. She guessed she would just have to do her best until she met the Doctor. She hoped that if she did manage to save Wilson, that it would not cause any damage.

She had just finished getting dressed when there was a frantic knock on her door. "Come in!" The door was thrown up and Rose was pleasantly surprised to see Mickey. She hadn't seen in a few years and her arms were around him in a big hug before she remembered that to him, he had probably just seen her yesterday. But the look on his face as she pulled away told her something was very wrong. Then she realized that she didn't remember Mickey coming to her house that day.

Mickey took several deep breaths as if to steady himself. "Look," he began, "I know you have to go to work, but we have to talk. It's important!" Rose looked at her alarm clock. She wouldn't meet the Doctor for several more hours and work could wait.

"Alright." she sat down on her bed and Mickey sat down next to her. She patiently waited for him to begin while he collected his thoughts.

"I know this is going to sound crazy," he began, "and I won't blame me if you don't believe me, but I didn't know who else I could tell." he took another deep breath. "This is..wrong. Everything is. I don't mean our relationship...per say...but when I went to bed last night...it was the year 2010. And when I woke up this morning I found it was 2005. I've somehow traveled back in time."

He paused and refused to look at Rose, as if he were afraid she would laugh in his face, but was the last thing on Rose's mind. Mickey knew too! It thrilled her that she was not alone. She had already been feeling guilty about leaving Mickey behind...again when she left with the Doctor, but if he remembered?

"I know." she said simply and Mickey turned to her in surprise. "The same thing happened to me, Mickey. I remember it all. The last time we say each other we had just finished saving the whole of reality from the Daleks."

Mickey let out a huge sigh of relief. "Oh, good! I was afraid you wouldn't believe him. In fact I was afraid you'd have met locked up."

"Never."

"But how did this happen?" asked Mickey.

Rose shook her head. "I wish I knew." Then she smiled at him. "But I am glad to see you again," Mickey. And I am sorry things turned out the way they did. I'm sorry for the way I treated you. "

"Don't be." said Mickey with such sincerity that Rose looked at him in surprise. "I'm not. Things turned out for the best in the end. As a matter of fact, Rose, I am...well, I was before I woke up here in the past, a happily married man."

Rose's eyes widened in delighted surprise. "Married? Mickey's that's fantastic! May I ask who the lucky Mrs. Smith is...er...was?"

"Martha."

"Martha? Martha Jones?" Mickey nodded. Rose smiled. "Mickey! Congratulations! I'm happy for you

both!"

"Yeah, but it's not anymore is it?" he said gloomily. "I mean I've woken up in the past! Right now she doesn't even know I exist!"

"Well, we both remember. Maybe she does too. Besides," she added happily, "do you know what day we've woken up on?" Mickey thought about for a while then shook his head. "Today's the day we first met the Doctor!"

Mickey jumped up in excitement. "Then what are we waiting for! The Doctor's the only one who can help us. Let's go meet him!"

"What a minute, Mickey." said Rose getting to her feet. "I don't meet the Doctor for another few hours. We have to be patient."

Mickey sighed. "A few hours!" he moaned. "I don't know if I can wait that long. I'll go crazy with boredom."

That gave Rose an idea. "Well, I have to go to work now, but there is something you can do for me that might relieve your boredom, but it will be dangerous."

Mickey smiled. "What is it?"

"Wilson, the chief electrician at the shop. He got killed by the shop-window-dummies last time and..."

"And you want me to make sure that doesn't happen?"

Rose nodded. "Like I said it will probably be dangerous. Maybe I should do it instead." Mickey shook his head.

"No way, Rose. You have to meet the Doctor. I'll look after Wilson." Rose looked doubtful, but Mickey just laughed. "No sweat, Rose! I've had a lot of practice dealing with things like this since the last time we met. I've been fighting monsters while you, Donna, and the Doctor have been off traveling the universe."

Mickey did not notice the pained look on Rose's face. Little did he realize that the entire time he, Martha, and Jack had been merely assuming Donna and Rose were still traveling with the Doctor, but he never could have guessed the real truth. A tear rolled down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away, hoping Mickey didn't notice it. She did not want to have to tell them that the Doctor had dumped her behind in the alternate universe with the human/metacrisis doctor, whom they all had come to call "John Smith".

John Smith. He no longer existed Rose realized and she felt suddenly guilty for being so happy to have gone back in time. Her relationship with him had been rocky from the start and it had been getting rockier as time went on. The more time passed the more Rose had come to realize that John just wasn't the Doctor, nor would he ever be. Not that she blamed him for that, on the contrary she had felt incredible sorry for him. It wasn't his fault. Rose had considered him a friend, but he wanted much more than that, but Rose just couldn't accept him as the Doctor. John had understood that in silence and in pain, Rose knew.

She would definitely miss him and she wished she could have loved him like he wanted her too, but she just couldn't. And now he no longer existed. Rose sighed. Why did the universe have to be so complicated?

She shook herself from her thoughts and realized that she had better hurry or she'd be late for work. Mickey offered to escort her and she accept the invitation readily. She had Mickey had much to discuss and as they headed off to the shop, Rose listened in delight as Mickey told her the details of how his and Martha's relationship had started.

Rose arrived at the shop with only a couple seconds to spare, but thankfully no one asked any questions. It took her a few minutes to get back into the routine of things, but before long it felt almost as if she had never left. As she went about her work, it suddenly dawned on her that the shop would be destroyed in a few hours and that the next day her coworkers would all be out of jobs. She knew it couldn't be helped. The shop had to be destroyed in order to stop the dummies. Still, if there was just another way...

The day passed much more slowly than Rose remembered it doing, but she knew that was before she was so excited and that she knew what was going to happen afterwards. She tried to pass the day by coming up with a mental list of all the places the Doctor would take her. She also tried to come up with a plan on how to stop herself from getting trapped in the alternate universe, but as that was a long time away, she would have plenty of time to develop it.

After what seemed almost an eternity to Rose, it was closing time. Her first thought was to run to the basement, but then she remembered how things had happened, so instead she started heading towards the doors. Sure enough, one of the security guards handed her a bag of cash. She took it and happily strolled towards the lifts that would take her to the basement, her future, and the Doctor.

A few minutes later she was walking towards the room, that she remembered meeting the Doctor in. She was sure her heart was pounding so loudly that even a deaf person could have heard it. She walked past the dummies, careful not to let on that she knew they were alive. Then they began to move and she hid a smile.

She had to make them think she was frightened. She had to pretend to think it was all a joke. So that's what she did. "Is it Derek? Very funny! I got the joke. You can knock it off now." The dummies backed her up to the wall. This was it. This was when her world would change forever.

A dummy raised an arm and Rose didn't even flinch. The Doctor would be there. He would save her. She never doubted that for a second, which is why what happened next came as such a huge shock. The dummy hit her hard and knocked her to the floor. Rose was too shocked to let out a cry of pain. She looked over to where she had expected the Doctor to be coming to her rescue, but there was no one there. This could not be happening! He had to be there. He had to be!

It wasn't until part of the dummy's hand slid open, revealing a gun ready to shoot her that she realized that it was happening and that the Doctor wasn't here to save her. Her instincts took over and she dove out of the way as the dummy shot at her. She rushed passed the other dummies and ran towards the lift. The dummies where slow and Rose did not have any trouble out distancing them. She only hoped that they wouldn't try to shoot at her. She made it into the lift. And quickly pushed the "up" button. She took several deep breaths.

The Doctor hadn't been there. This wasn't right! He was suppose to have been there! He was! That's how Rose had remembered it happening. A tear rolled down her cheek and then another. The Doctor wasn't there. Something was wrong, very wrong and she had to find out what.

Rose dashed out of the shop and ran towards her home, her mind a whirl. If the Doctor wasn't there, then the city...no, the entire world was in danger from the Nesteen consciousness. It had to be stopped. But how?

Rose was so focused on this that she bumped into Mickey who had been waiting for her. "Hey!" He smiled at her, but then the smile quickly disappeared when he noticed the expression on her face. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"The Doctor wasn't there."

"What!" Mickey looked back over her shoulder as if suddenly realizing that the shop hadn't been blown up. "But...I don't understand. He was supposed to be there!"

"But he wasn't, Mickey! Something...something's wrong, and we have to find out what." Mickey nodded and then Rose suddenly remembered something. "Wilson?" she asked.

Mickey shook his head sadly. "He was already dead by the time I got to him." Rose sighed. "So what do we do now?" he asked.

"First we have to stop the Nesteen, and I know right where to find it."

"But how?" said Mickey. "The last time the Doctor was only able to stop it because he had the thing of anti-plastic! And since he's not here..."

Rose knew what Mickey was getting at, but she also knew that if they didn't try, the whole planet would be destroyed. They had to do something. "Think like the Doctor, Mickey. We'll thing of something."

_Author's Note: Whew! Sorry it took a while, but I kept having to rewrite this chapter as I didn't like how it kept turning out. Anyways, please, please, review!_


	3. Christmas Day, 2007

_Disclaimer: RTD should go back to writing Doctor Who. SM just doesn't have quite what it takes. _

Chapter 3: Christmas Day, 2007

"Donna!"

Donna Noble felt a hand on her shoulder gently shaking her awake. She opened her eyes and sat up in surprise. "Mum? What are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" Sylvia repeated. "Why I live here, or have you forgotten that?" It was only then as Donna looked around the room that she realized that she was not in her own house. Instead she was in the house that belonged to her granddad, Wilf. What was she doing here? "Come on, Donna." said Sylvia breaking into her daughter's thoughts. "You don't want to be late."

"Late for what?" asked Donna. She didn't recall having an appointments for today. Had she forgotten something...again?

"Why, you really are out of it, aren't you?" said Sylvia shaking her head. "To think that a woman should forget about her own wedding." She didn't notice Donna's jaw drop. "Now hurry up and get something to eat before you get dressed." Sylvia hurried out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Donna just started at the empty room and after a few seconds was finally able to get her voice back. "But I'm already married!" She realized of course that she was speaking to an empty room. This, she decided, had to be a prank.

Sure pulling a prank was not like her mother, but Donna knew that her mother knew full well that Donna was already a married woman. And it wasn't funny! Not in the least. Donna opened the door to find her mum to tell her just that, but instead she found her granddad standing outside the door. In his hand he held a small present all wrapped up.

"Here, you go, sweetheart." he said, handing it to her. "It's a sort of wedding present and Christmas present all in one." As Donna took it, she felt her world turned upside down. Her granddad would NEVER pull a prank on her like this. So what was going on?

"Granddad..." she began but she stopped short abruptly when someone else appeared behind him. Donna's eyes widened at the sight of her dad. This was just not possible! She had to be dreaming. Yes, that was it. It was merely a dream. Her dad could not be here. He had died a few years back.

"Are you alright?" asked Geoffry Noble, starting intently at his daughter. "You look like you've just seen a ghost." Donna forced a smile on her face.

"I'm fine." she said. She turned to close her door when something Wilf had said finally registered. "Did you say it was Christmas?"

He nodded. "Yes, I did. Did you forget that you chose to have your wedding on Christmas?" Donna just nodded. Then she closed the door. Her body her whole body was shaking as she put the unopened present on the bed. _This can't be happening, _she thought, _it just isn't possible! _

Her dad was alive...it was Christmas Day...and her wedding. "But I'm already married!" she repeated. "I have a husband. His name is Shawn Temple!" Where was he now? He was out there...somewhere...he had to be!

Suddenly Donna put as if her head were about to explode. An unbearable pain shot through her brain and Donna cried out in pain. _Not again!_ She had had these sorts of episodes on and off for the last few years.

Then suddenly, memories flashed through her mind. She saw herself walking down the aisle. She saw a strange man starting at her in shock and one word tears from his lips, "What!" She saw a giant spider like creature. She saw a big blue box. She saw all sorts of incredible things. She fell down on the bed.

When she opened her eyes again there was a new fire in her eyes. She, Donna Noble, was a super temp. She was a companion of the Doctor! And one thought flashed through her mind before all others: "He erased my memories!"

She scowled. Someone was in for it when she got her hands on him! The Doctor had better watch out, because if there was one thing Donna was sure of, it was that one way or another she would find him. He may be the Doctor with a time machine, but she was Donna Noble...and she had Time Lord knowledge in her head!

Then, everything clicked. Christmas Day...her wedding...it was Christmas Day, 2007, the day she was going to getting married to Lance, the day she first met the Doctor. She knew that she had somehow gone back on her own time line, although how was in question. Her Time Lord knowledge told her that this was impossible, but it had happened all the same.

"Oh, well." she shrugged it off. Together, she and the Doctor could figure it out, of that Donna had no doubt. For now, Donna had a wedding to get ready for. Yes, it would have bothered her to get married when she was already married to Shawn, but there was two things that altered that. One, she technically was not married to Shawn and would not be for another few years. Two, she wasn't really going to marry Lance anyway. She just had to walk down the aisle until she found herself in the TARDIS. And this time was she was not going to so in his face about Rose.

Donna felt a little guilty about that. She had implied that she thought he had kidnapped Rose (and worse!) when really the Doctor had just lost her to the alternate universe. Poor Doctor! And poor Rose! This time things would be different for her two friends, Donna was determined to make sure of that! This time Donna would take the Doctor up on his offer to travel with him the first time he asked. This time she would help him realize that Rose was coming back BEFORE she met her in the alternate universe. This time they would stop Davros and the Daleks without creating the human/metacrisis Doctor, so that the Doctor didn't have to leave him and Rose behind in the alternate universe. This time the three of them would travel together.

But first, she had a wedding to go to and it was with a brighter out look that she finally stepped from her room, looking like a bride should on her wedding day. Her parents and her granddad claimed they had never seen anyone more beautiful and as they drove to the church, Donna had a hard time, not bouncing up and down with excitement.

The only downside to her plan was Shawn, but she was already coming up with ways to remedy that. She would meet him again. They would fall in love...again...and get married...again...and then he would come with them! Nothing could be more perfect.

It was a five minute drive from the house to the church, but to Donna it seemed to take much longer. She was getting restless and when the car finally pulled up to the church, Donna was out of it before it had even stopped moving.

"Careful, Donna!" said Sylvia. "You could have torn your dress...or worse." Donna rolled her eyes, like her dress was really all that important. She wasn't even going to get married anyway, so who cared about the dress? Donna sure didn't.

As her dad walked her down the aisle, Donna found that she knew the exact moment when she would be pulled into the TARDIS. Normally, she would have found that odd, but she automatically knew that the Time Lord knowledge in her head was affecting her memories and this did not bother her in the least.

_Five seconds..._She could see Lance. _Four seconds._ How she wanted to punch his lights out! _Three seconds. _He almost deserved what the Racnoss had done to him. _Two seconds._ Almost. _One second. _Nothing. Donna was still here in the church walking toward the man whose plans had unconsciously changed her life...for the better.

Donna found it odd that she wasn't panicking, when she was sure she should be. She wasn't in the TARDIS with the Doctor, instead she was still in the church. If she hadn't been pulled into the TARDIS...that could only mean something had gone very wrong. But what? Having Time Lord knowledge in her head, didn't make her all knowing. Even as she realized that she was still there, she knew that she would have to deal with the Racnoss all by herself, without the Doctor, without the TARDIS, and without so much as a sonic screwdriver. But first she would have to cure herself of the Huen particles that Lance had poisoned her with.

Yet, she wasn't panicking. Instead, she just calmly let go of her dad's arm, turned and walked right out of the church without so much as backwards glance. If she had, she probably would have smirked at the relieved look on Lance's face. She strode calmly from the church into the cold winter air and then still very calmly broke into a run. She had a job to do and by golly she was going to do it! She was Donna Noble.

_Author's Note: Hello! So, what you think? Review? Please! Next up...Martha Jones!_


	4. 2008

_Disclaimer: If I owned Doctor Who, would I really be writing fanfiction for it?_

Chapter 4: 2008

Martha knew something was wrong before she even opened her eyes. For one thing whatever she was lying on was too soft. Now she would not normally complain about sleeping on a soft bed after months of sleeping on a cold, lumpy cot. But the fact that she didn't even remember going to sleep on a soft bed, was another problem in and of itself.

The most upsetting problem, though, was that she was apparently alone on this soft bed. She could not feel the warmth of Mickey next to her, as she had for the last year or so. This bothered her much more than the knowledge that she was sleeping on a soft bed of which she had no memory of falling asleep on. Taken together these three things meant something was very, very wrong.

So, Martha did what came naturally to her; she grabbed her gun which she always kept on her person at all times, even when she was asleep. One was not nearly killed by aliens on a daily basis without adopting some means of protecting oneself. Yes, of course Mickey had often complained about it for the first few months of their marriage, but eventually he had not only quit complaining and taking to sleeping with a gun himself. There was another problem that Martha had not noticed at first: there was no gun. Her hand grabbed nothing but air, just as her eyes flew open and Martha was confronted with a fifth problem.

She was in her house. Waking up in one's own home, is not usually a cause for alarm. Usually. But if you are Martha Jones then that is very bad news indeed, seeing as how Martha had not lived in this house since she had joined UNIT, which had occurred shortly after she quit traveling with the Doctor. So, you see, waking up in her old house was not as pleasant as it should have been.

Martha blinked. She was in her old house. She blinked again. She was still in her old house. Was this a trick of some kind? As Martha sat up, she noticed something out of the corner of her left eye and as she glanced down at her left hand, she noticed problem number six: her wedding ring was not on her hand.

Suddenly, Martha's fear and confusion where gone, and in their place was anger. Whoever had done this had not only stolen her away and taken her gun (in retrospect, she could handle both of those things), but had stolen her wedding ring as well, and that just made her angry! Who would do such a thing?

Martha gritted her teeth. Whoever was responsible had better watch out! She was Martha Jones-Smith and she had traveled with the Doctor, she knew more about alien species then almost any other human being (if you didn't count the Doctor's other companions).

Martha slowly got up and looked around the room, searching for something...anything she could use as a weapon in case she had to defend herself. But there wasn't anything. Then she spotted a mobile. Her mobile, but it wasn't the fact that it was hers that startled her the most, it was the date. 31_st__ of March, 2008._

Martha swallowed, trying to stop the scream she felt rising up in her throat. _2008._ It couldn't be! It just wasn't possible. Yet, something told Martha that it was. This wasn't just some trick as she had supposed. She had actually waken up in her own past. Had everything been a dream? No, of that Martha was utterly certain. _31__st__ of March, 2008._ Why did that date sound so familiar? 

As she tried to think, she realized that she would still be working at the hospital, training to be a doctor. Then it clicked. Doctor. _The _Doctor. Today was the day they first met. Martha didn't take the time to think over everything that this implied, instead she found herself quickly getting dressed and then dashing out side, but not before making sure to grab the mobile. If this was the day she met the Doctor, then she wasn't going to miss it for anything. Only he could make sense of this.

On the way, she had to deal with the phone calls from her family. She remembered these conversations and she could honestly say she had not missed having to deal calls like that. Her parents had reconciled and everyone was happy...or had been.

She was so absorbed in what was happening that it wasn't until she reached the hospital that she realized that she hadn't run into the Doctor removing his tie. For a second, Martha panicked, but then she realized it must be because this time she didn't ask the Doctor to prove that the TARDIS could travel in time. Why would she? She already knew that.

Martha was bored out of her mind when she and the other medical students made the rounds with Mr. Stoker. She wanted to rush ahead and go to where she remembered the Doctor being, but she knew she had to wait. She couldn't let on that anything was the matter.

Then they came to Florence Finnegan and it took all of Martha's self-control not to throttle her then and there. Martha wanted to scream and warn everyone. _She's a plasmavore! _ Martha hide a shudder. Then Mr. Stoker asked her a question, which Martha answered correctly. Mr. Stoker nodded in approval.

_Now, the Doctor!_ She followed the group in that direction, but instead of going to the bed that Martha remembered the Doctor being in, they passed it up! Martha stopped and turned to look at the bed. It was empty.

Martha just stood there. She didn't move. She didn't speak. She almost forgot to even breath. The Doctor wasn't there, which meant something was definitely not right. Something bad was going to happen and they one person who could stop it was not there! "Jones!" she heard Mr. Stoker call her name, but now she didn't care about keeping up her pretense. Instead she just turned and ran in the opposite direction.

The Doctor wasn't here. Martha could not get her mind around that. How could he not be? It just didn't make sense. She had waken up in her past, which meant that he _should _ be there, but he wasn't. This was bad, very, very, bad. Her past had been messed with and the one person who could explain it, simply wasn't there.

Martha made her way to the employees' lounge. It was empty for which Martha was grateful for. She sat down and buried her face in her hands. This was just too much! The Doctor wasn't here, but more importantly, neither was Mickey. Her husband. What had happened to him? Martha wished she knew. A tear fell down her cheek and Martha quickly wiped it away.

Mickey. He was the reason Martha had to find out what was going on. It was for him that she had hoped to find the Doctor. Not only was the Doctor the only person who could explain everything, but it was through the Doctor that she had met Mickey. And know that it turned out the Doctor wasn't here...Martha didn't even want to think what that meant for her future with Mickey.

Then Martha heard it; the soft drizzle of rain against the window. She looked up and saw just what she had expected, it was raining, but it wasn't ordinary rain. Rain came from the sky and went down. This, this rain was coming from the ground and was going up. Any other person would have been shocked, but not Martha. She knew what it meant and she had known it was coming. _It's started, _she thought bitterly.

She got to her feet. The Doctor might be here to save her and everyone else, but she was here. She knew what was going to happen and while she might not be as intelligent as the Doctor she knew enough to help. She had to do it! She had to stop the plasmavore and help the Judoon find her before it is too late.

If there was one thing she had learned from the Doctor, it was that you couldn't just passively watch from the sidelines. You had to act. You had to save lives, even if it meant losing your own. This was her one chance. If she didn't nothing, she would die along with everyone else. If she acted, she might make it out alive. She might be able to to find away back to her old life...back to Mickey.

The ground rumbled and Martha didn't even flinch when she was thrown to the ground. Everything shook and Martha just calmly stayed where she had fallen. Then everything went still and she got to her feet again. A grim smile spread across her face as she looked out the window and saw exactly what she had expected to see: the moon. They were on the moon.

_Author's Note: Just to let you know, I hope to have a new chapter up, at least every four days. Maybe sooner. So if four days go by without a new chapter, feel free to yell at me. Any, review?_


	5. Are You My Mummy?

_Disclaimer: I own Doctor Who in my own private alternate universe. So there!_

Chapter 5: "Are You My Mummy?"

Jack raced through the dark streets of war torn London. He knew it would be a few more hours before the bomb fell, but time wasn't the issue here. How he was going to stop it and reverse what the nanogenes had done, was.

Both of those tasks would be difficult by themselves, but together?...even more so. Which to do first? He tried to remember everything that had happen this night the first time he had lived through it. He recalled how he had taken care of the bomb; it had destroyed his ship and he had only survived because of the Doctor and Rose, and they weren't here this time, but that's okay because he...

Jack froze mid-stride. A sudden thought came into his mind, a horrible thought. He was back living in his past, which meant that this was _before_ Rose had made him immortal. Jack swallowed. He was mortal. The bomb would definitely kill him.

"_Do you want to die?" _The Doctor's question from long ago echoed in his mind and Jack repeated his answer as sound as the memory came to him.

"_I thought I did. I don't know. But this lot, you see them out here surviving, and that's fantastic!" _Jack closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He didn't want to die, he decided, not like this. If he had to die, he wanted it be of old age after having had lived a full life.

"But you've done that, Captain Jack Harkness." he told himself. He had lived for over one hundred and fifty years. Even if it technically never happened, he remembered it. He had had his time. He didn't want to die, but he would. He would die to save the human race. He would stop that bomb, even though it would cost him his life.

But first, he had to reverse of the effects of the nanogenes. How had the Doctor done that? He tried to remember. He been had finding a way to get rid of the bomb when the Doctor had fixed that particular problem, but surely the Doctor had told him how he had done it?

His eyes snapped back open. The Doctor hadn't told him, but Rose had. The girl...what was her name?...oh, right, Nancy. He had to find Nancy. But how? London was a big city even in the 1940s. Jack took off again, he had to get to his ship, and fast.

Then he hit himself. "Jack, you are an idiot!" He reached over and pushed his sleeve up. A smile spread across his face as the beginnings of an idea started to form in his mind. If he was right, not only would this get him to his ship in no time flat, but it would also save his life. He pushed a button on the alien technology that he was wearing on his wrist and he disappeared from the street and reappeared in his ship. "Time to save the world." he murmured to himself.

Nancy glanced back once more over her shoulder as she ran. There was no sign that she was being followed, but Nancy did not assume that meant that she wasn't. She knew better than to believe that. He was always close behind her. He would not leave her alone.

She turned back to face the way she was running and quickly skidded to a halt. There he was in front of her. She took a step back as he took a step forward. "Are you my mummy?" he asked, his voice a little muffled by the gas mask that was actually now part of his face. He reached out as if to touch her, and Nancy hastily took a few more steps back. "Are you my mummy?" he repeated.

She shook her head. "No, Jamie. It's me...Nancy. Your sister." The little boy cocked his head to the side, as if he didn't understand what she had just said.

"Are you my mummy?" This time the question came from behind her and Nancy spun around and realized she was surrounded by people in gas masks, all asking for their mummies. She felt a lump rise in her throat and she knew she was trapped. There was nowhere she could run to.

Then suddenly Jamie and the people were gone, as was city. Nancy found herself in a strange looking place with weird mechanical instruments all over the place, which was pretty cramped. She stifled a scream. Where was she? What had happened?

"It's okay. You're perfectly safe." She looked around and noticed that she was not alone. Sitting in a chair was a young man, an officer by the looks of him.

"You're American." That's all that she could think to say. He blinked. He obviously hadn't expected for that to be the first thing out of her mouth. He probably had expected her to comment on the fact that she was in some sort of ship.

"I'm Captain Jack Harkness." he said introducing himself. "It's nice to meet you, Nancy." Nancy started and looked at him half in wonder, half in fear.

"How do know my name?"

Jack didn't answer right away. He knew it probably would do to tell her the truth. She would just think he was crazy, and right now he needed her full cooperation. So, he simply said, "I know a lot things. I know that you're scared, but not of the bombs. I know why you are constantly on the run. I know what happened...to Jamie."

Nancy just looked at him and then back down at the floor. She wiped away a tear as it rolled down her cheek. She wasn't not going to cry! Especially not in front from some strange man that knew who she was.

"And what if I told you," he added gently, "I know how to reverse what happened? I know how to bring him back to normal."

Nancy's fear turned to sudden hope. She didn't know why, but she believed him. He did know a way. "How?" she asked. "I'd do anything to get him back...to the way he was."

Jack looked her in the eye. "Would you tell him the truth?" Nancy looked away.

"Truth? I don't know what you're talking about."

"Now, we both know that's not true, Nancy." said Jack. "You and I both know that Jamie isn't your brother...he's your son."

Tears began to spill once more, but this time Nancy didn't care. "How do you know that? I haven't told anyone!"

"That's not what's important. What is, is that you tell him the truth."

"Why?" asked Nancy vehemently. "What would that solve? Nothing! It wouldn't make things better. If anything, it would only make them worse, cause then he'd know...know that he has a whore for a mother."

Jack's eyes flared. "You are not a whore, Nancy, and I never want to hear you call yourself that again! Everyone makes mistakes. No one is perfect. Jamie is your son. He needs to know that. You're scared, Nancy, I understand that, but so is he! He is a little boy looking for his mummy and he's going to keep asking until you decide to the right thing and not lie to him anymore!" Jack blinked as he realized he had sounded just like the Doctor.

Nancy looked away, feeling more ashamed then before. "But how will that bring him back? You said you knew how to bring him back."

He sighed. "Nancy, listen. There are things called nanogenes, they...well, they're not from this world. They are designed to help...heal and repair people...well, aliens. They were in that...strange bomb that nearly killed Jamie and they got loose. Only these nanogenes had never seen a human before. They didn't know exactly what a human should look like. All they had to go on was a scared little boy wearing a gas mask. And so now they think that;s what humans should look like. So, they are going to spread and keep changing people until every last human being on Earth is nothing more than an empty child asking for his (or her) mummy."

He paused, to let that sink in. Nancy didn't say anything and for a brief moment Nancy was going to call him insane and refuse to help him, but he eventually decided to assume that her silence meant she believed him.

"But you can change all that, Nancy." he said softly. "You are the boy's mother. If the nanogenes see the two of you together, they will recognize that you are the parent and that you are how humans are supposed to be. They will fix everything that they've changed. Nancy, please! You are the only hope for the human race."

Nancy was silent for a few seconds, then she looked up at him. "Is this a joke?" she asked, but Jack could tell from her tone that she didn't really believe it was. He shook his head and she sighed. "Alright then. I will tell Jamie the truth."

"Where is he?" asked Nancy looking around. They were are at the site were the "bomb" had fallen. Jack had teleported them down as close as he dared. On the walk there, Nancy had asked about the ship and Jack explained as much as he could. Nancy took it all surprisingly well.

The site had of course been guarded, but Jack had managed to distract the guards for a bit and they had gone off on a wild goose chase, while Jack had double backed to the site and rejoined Nancy, but there was no sign of Jamie.

Jack glanced at his watch. They had only fifteen minutes until the bomb would fall. They were running out of time. "Come on, Jamie." he whispered. "Where are you?" Then he heard the sound of footsteps coming their way and he looked up. "Bingo." He smiled. Jamie was walking towards Nancy and following behind him were dozen of people who had been effected.

"Are you my mummy?" asked Jamie. Nancy went and knelt in front of him.

"Yes, I am. I am your mummy, Jamie, and I will always be your mummy." She put her arms around him in a hug.

"Come on, nanogenes." whispered Jack. "Come on!" Then mother and son were surrounded by a million tiny lights as the nanogenes seemed to comprehend. Then they vanished only to surround the other people.

Nancy tentatively reached up and pulled the gas mask from Jamie's face. A little boy smiled down at her, his face streaked with tears. Jack smiled. It had worked. He glanced back down at his watch. Now he had a bomb to stop. No one seemed to notice as Jack vanished into thin air.

Jack glanced down at the bomb that was now resting in his ships hull. Now came the trick part, if Jack was right, he could get rid of the bomb and still live, but if he was wrong?...then he would die. Jack set the coordinates on his ship. The bomb would explode in a few minutes and he didn't want it to be anywhere that would cause any damage to anyone.

Then he looked down at the vortex manipulator on his wrist. Why hadn't he thought of using it the first time? But where to go? He thought of a moment before setting some coordinates into it. He pushed a button.

Just in time too, cause no sooner had Captain Jack Harkness vanished from his ship then it exploded. Jack groaned as he appeared somewhere (and hopefully some_when_) different. Traveling by vortex manipulator was not the comfortable way to travel, but what other choice did he have?

Before he could even look around and get his bearings he heard footsteps behind him and then a familiar voice called his name. "Jack!"

_Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Get used to them. Thanks to everyone who's been kind enough to review and please, keep 'em coming!_


	6. Of Shop Window Dummies

_Disclaimer: I obviously don't own Doctor Who as Rose, Donna, and Jack are currently not on the show!_

Chapter 6: Of Shop-Window Dummies

"We're going to die." Mickey said flatly as he and Rose huddled in the sitting room of the flat she shared with her mum. They were bending over various sketches and plans that they had written, crossed out, and rewritten.

Rose sighed. "Thanks, Mr. Positive." she said sarcastically, but deep down she secretly thought he might be right. How they were going to do this without the Doctor, Rose honestly did not know.

She closed her eyes and brought up every memory of what had happened the first time she had lived through this. She examined very possibility that came to mind, but all of them ended up with her and Mickey getting killed and not defeating the Nestene. She opened her eyes and looked over at Mickey who was watching her expectantly. "We have to at least try, Mickey. If we don't...the Nestene will destroy the whole planet. Our lives aren't worth more then those of 6 billion other people."

Mickey nodded grimly. "I know, Rose. It's just..." he sighed, sadly. "I just wish that I could see Martha one last time and tell...tell her I love her." he choked back a sob.

Rose gently laid her hand on his shoulder and gave it a sympathetic squeeze. "I know, Mickey. I feel the same way about the Doctor, but we have to do this...for them, if not for the rest of the human race." She smiled kindly at him. "Martha would be proud of you."

Mickey smiled back. "As the Doctor would be of you, Rose. So, you never told me, what were the two of you up to before all of this happened? You must have had a bunch of cool adventures since the last time I saw you."

Rose quickly looked away, hoping that Mickey hadn't noticed the pained look that came into her eyes. She bit her lip. She didn't want to lie to him, but neither did she want him to know the awful truth. Thankfully, she was spared having to answer by her mum's entrance at that moment.

"Here, you go." said Jackie handing them each a cup of tea. "What you two up to then?" She bent over the papers, but Mickey quickly pushed them away.

"A project," Rose said without hesitation, "some of one Mickey's mates came up with. It's a surprise though." Jackie nodded and Rose was relieved that she didn't ask any more questions.

"Well, don't stay up too late." she said before leaving. As soon as she was gone, Rose got to her feet and started to pace. Several minutes passed in silence. Mickey watched her without offering any comments. Suddenly, Rose stopped moving and her eyes flew open.

"Mickey, the Doctor said the Nestene was living plastic, right?"

Mickey thought back to the first time they had lived through this day. "Yeah, I think he did. Why? Is that important?"

"It might be." said Rose sitting back down next to him. "It might help tell us how to defeat it." Mickey looked at her blankly. "If you want to destroy something made of plastic, what do you do?" He shook his head to show he didn't know. "You burn it! Kinda of like a credit card, ya? We need fire! When you put plastic to a fire it melts and it becomes all gooey."

"But the Nestene Consciousness was already sorta melted and gooey." Mickey pointed out. "It wasn't solid plastic, it was more like liquid."

"Yes, but what happens when you put liquid to a fire for long enough?" prompted Rose.

"It boils." said Mickey.

"Yeah, but then if you leave it on the fire for long enough it evaporates!"

"I don't know, Rose." Mickey said, looking doubtful. "The Nestene isn't like most liquids...it's alive. It might not evaporate. Even if it does, who's to say it wouldn't still be alive in gas form? Besides, how are we going to set in on fire for a few seconds, let alone long enough for that to happen?"

"Well, do you have a better idea?"

"We could...make a bomb!" said Mickey beaming. "That would definitely destroy the Nestene. We could dump it in that sewer like thing were it's finding then come back here and remote detonate it!"

Rose shook her head. "No. First of all, we don't know how to make a bomb.."

"I do!" Mickey interrupted. "It's not all that hard really. All you have to do is..."

"Secondly," said Rose now interrupting him, "innocent people might get hurt. We want to do as little damage as possible. And thirdly, we have to give the Nestene a chance...a chance to leave."

"What?" Mickey looked at her incredulously.

"It's what the Doctor did and what he would us to do."

"And it didn't take that chance last time. What makes you think it will be any different this time? Time doesn't change like that."

When Rose turned to look at him, Mickey saw that there was a tear running down her cheek. "Then where's the Doctor, Mickey?" she asked softly. Mickey didn't answer. He couldn't. Rose had proved her point.

He could tell she missed the Doctor more then she was letting on. It must be killing her inside, not knowing where he was or why he hadn't shown up. At least with Martha, he was fairly certain she was safe. She was an intelligent woman and he could only hope that she hadn't vanished as well. Unfortunately, he would be able to know for certain for a few more years.

"Alright." he said. "We go with your plan. You're right. We have to give the Nestene a chance...even if it probably won't take it."

It was past midnight when they finally arrived at the underground hide out that was the Nestene's lair. London was a big city and even though they both had lived there their entire lives before meeting the Doctor, it was easy to get lost in. They took several wrong turns and at one point had ended up at the opposite end of the city. They then had to double back and Rose was shivering by then. It was a lot colder then she remembered it being.

"I hope it doesn't ruin the time line." she muttered. Mickey gave her a questioning look. "We're about to confront the Nestene a day earlier then we did last time. I hope it doesn't cause some catastrophic, universe destroying event." _Or bring down the Reapers._ She shuddered as she thought of those monsters that even the Doctor had been powerless to defeat.

"You want to wait a day?" asked Mickey. Rose sighed and he could tell she was struggling with indecision.

"I don't thing one day will make that big of a difference." she said finally, but Mickey could tell she still wasn't sure. "Let's just get this over with." He nodded and they continued onward.

Rose looked down at the entrance to the Nestene's lair (as she had come to call it). Mickey looked at it then back at her. "Ladies first."

"Thanks." She took a deep breath and then climbed down, Mickey following only a few feet behind her. The lair looked exactly as she remembered it and she had half-hoped, half-expected to see the Doctor there waiting for them. Rose trying not to feel too disappointed when she realized that it was just her, Mickey, a couple of the shop-window dummies, and the Nestene Consciousness itself.

Rose stepped slowly forward towards the Consciousness and was relieved when the shop-window dummies didn't move. The dummies (or the Automatons as she had learned they were called) were dead...for now. She could only hope that it would stay that way.

As she moved forward, she felt herself plagued by sudden doubts. What if this didn't work? It would be all for nothing. If it didn't work, she and Mickey would not get another chance. This was it. It would have to work. It had to! _If only the Doctor were here._

She brushed that thought aside as she knew it would only make her cry again. That was something she would think about later (if there was a later for her). She resolved that if they survived this, she would find him. She had to. She had to know why he hadn't been there for her, but more importantly she had to know why he had left her behind with the human/metacrisis doctor. She had to know if he loved her.

Mickey placed his hand on her shoulder and Rose was suddenly grateful that he was there with her. She didn't know if she could go through with this alone. She was glad that he too remembered the Doctor. She was glad that she wouldn't have to break his heart...again.

As they came closer, the Consciousness seemed to wake. It sensed their presence and it didn't seem pleased. The automatons woke moved forward. "Wait!" Rose shouted and the automatons went still and the Consciousness regarded her with cold hatred and curiosity. She took a deep breath. "Leave this planet...or we'll have to destroy you." The Consciousness laughed. Then it spoke.

Rose knew she shouldn't be able to understand it, but somehow she did and what it said sent chills down her spine. Mickey had been right. The Nestene Consciousness would not take the chance like it hadn't the first time. "Fine then." she said, hoping that her voice wasn't shaking. "Mickey, the blowtorch."

Mickey held up the blowtorch that he had been carrying and the Consciousness hissed in displeasure. The automatons snapped back to life and they quickly moved towards Rose, but Mickey was faster. He pushed past her and the two automatons both got blasted in the face and they were melted in a matter of seconds.

Then Mickey turned on the Consciousness. It seemed to be trying to form...something...something that could attack them. "Now, Mickey!" Rose yelled and Mickey turned the blowtorch onto the highest setting, but the Consciousness was too far away. There was on thing for it. Mickey looked at Rose, asking her a silent question and she nodded grimly. She crossed her fingers as Mickey threw the blowtorch at the Consciousness.

It howled in agony and Rose figured it must really have not liked fire because it began to evaporate much fast then either she or Mickey had thought it would. Suddenly the ground shock. "It's gonna blow!" said Mickey. He grabbed Rose around the waist and pushed towards the exit.

As Rose began to climb back up the latter, she risked a peek over her shoulder. The Nestene Consciousness was gone. It had evaporated and their planned had worked. They had succeeded.

The breathed in the fresh air. "We did it." said Mickey, his voice the shock in his voice was obvious.

"We did." Rose agreed. Then they smiled at each and began to laugh. Rose froze mid laugh as a man appeared in the street out of nowhere. His back was towards them, but even from behind Rose would know him any where. "Jack!"

He turned around and for a moment, Rose was afraid he didn't remember her. Then she was his eyes widened in surprise and a huge smile crossed his face. "Rose! Mickey!" He ran to them and the three friends found themselves in a group hug.

_Author's Note: So, Jack has know been reunited with Rose and Mickey! Know they just have to find the others. I have only one request: review!_


	7. The Bride and the Spider

_Disclaimer: If I owned Doctor Who, Rose and Donna would still be with the Doctor and therefore I would not be writing this story!_

Chapter 7: The Bride and the Spider

_Pockets!_ Donna thought. If only she had pockets. Of course being in a wedding dress, she had no pockets. It was something that had come up constantly the first time she had lived through this day.

As she ran, Donna's mind whizzed through ideas at a million miles an hour. She was grateful for the Time Lord knowledge in her mind, but it still didn't change the fact that she was going to have to stop the Racnoss and save the world without so much as a sonic screwdriver! The Doctor had at least had that!

She caught something out of the corner of her eyes. She smiled grimly when she realized that it was a pair of the robot-Santas. They were coming for her...and that gave her an idea. She stopped in her tracks and spun around to face the Santas as they approached her. "Take me to your leader!"

The Santas froze, suddenly still and it was clear to Donna that the Empress of the Racnoss was surprised by her command. She obviously hadn't expected Donna to have any clue as to what was going on and was probably trying to make up her mind as to whether or not this was a trap.

"Well?" Donna demanded, impatiently tapping her foot on the ground. "I haven't got all day...and neither do you!"

The Empress must have decided it was worth the risk cause the Santans sprang back to life and they caught Donna's upper arms in a death like grip. "Ow!" she winced in pain. "Take it easy! I'm coming of my own free will, so you don't have to hurt me."

The Santas relaxed their grip and began to pull Donna along, neither noticed the smug smile she wore on her face. She may not have pockets and she may not have a sonic screwdriver for that matter, but she had something else, something that might just save the world.

Donna casually tossed her head back, just enough for her wedding veil to fall off and she caught it with her hands behind her back. Keeping her eyes forward so that the robot-Santas wouldn't suspect anything, she torn the veil of the metal tiara like wiring it had been attached to. Now, she just needed some time...

The secret basement of H.C. Clemens was just as Donna remembered it. Cold, dark, and musty. She shivered slightly and not for the first time since she had gotten her memory back did she wish that the Doctor was there with her.

Even though she was sure she knew how to beat the Racnoss, it still would have been nice to have him beside her in this awful place. His boyish grin and constant cheerfulness would have made her feel more at ease here. She hadn't fully appreciated his presence the first time, but now she did. If he only were there.

But he wasn't, so she would have to do this on her own. _It's all up to you, Donna Noble. _Donna took a deep breath as she allowed the robot-Santas to lead her into the big room that she could never forget. There she was. The Empress of the Racnoss herself. _More like the Empress of giant the red spiders._ Donna thought, dryly. Donna noted the huge hole in the ground that led down to the center of the Earth. That's where the rest of the Racnoss where.

"Ah!" said the Empress, grinning maliciously at her. "If it isn't the little bride. I have waited long for this day and it is here at last."

"I bet you have." Donna retorted. "Waited long enough to poison me...with Hueon particles...your Spideryness!"

The look on the Empress's face was priceless and Donna suddenly wished that she had a camera handy. The Empress clearly couldn't make up her mind as to what surprised her more, the fact that Donna knew about the Hueon particles or that she had actually dared to call her a spider. She was so shocked that she couldn't even speak for a few minutes.

"You..." she finally managed to choke out the word, "you know about..." she was cut off by the sudden entrance of Lance. He didn't noticed Donna or the robots at first. His focus was completely on the Empress and he looked pale and he seemed to be shaking with terror.

Donna instantly knew that he had come to report his "failure" to the Empress of the Racnoss. Donna had guessed that would be the case, in fact, she had counted on it. It was vital to her plan. He no doubt believed that the Empress would have him killed.

"I..." he trembled and Donna almost felt sorry for him. "I have...failed you...she...got away." He stood looking at the ground and from the way he was wincing, Donna guessed he expected to feel claws swipe down at him at any moment.

The Empress blinked. She looked over at Donna and then back at Lance. "Oh, really?" Lance looked up in surprise, for her tone had not been one of rage at being disappointed, but instead it had been one of interest. The Empress nodded in Donna's direction and Lance turned and let out a yelp of surprise.

"Hello, Lance." Donna gave him her best _ you are in so much trouble_ grin. "Didn't expect to see me here, did you?"

Lance just started at her open mouthed. "How...?"

"She told the robots to bring her here." said the Empress, her tone dripping with barely constrained rage. "And she knows about the Hueon particles."

Lance just shook his head, keeping his eyes on Donna. "That's impossible. There's no way she could have found out."

"Unless, you told her." said the Empress with deadly calm and Lance spun to face her, his eyes wide with terror.

"No! I didn't. I never breathed a word."

"Then how could she know?" the Empress demanded.

"I...I don't know." said Lance. "Why don't you ask her yourself?"

The Empress snorted in derision. "Like she'd tell the truth."

"She's a horrible liar." Lance insisted. "Just ask her."

"It doesn't really matter." snapped the Empress. "She will still suffer and my children will still rise. Her knowing doesn't really effect our plans!"

While this exchange had been going on, neither the Empress nor Lance had been paying any attention to Donna, which is just what she had hoped would happen. It gave her just enough time, to complete another stage of her plan. With some help from the tiara, which she had managed to bend it a straight wire on her way here, the robots were now under her control and not the Empress's.

It didn't take long for her to twist her way out of their grasp and since neither had moved since their arrival, it didn't come as any surprise to her that they didn't move now. After removing their hoods, she used the make shift wire to reprogram them, once she found the correct electrical circuits. She had just put the hoods back on and slipped her arms back it their hands, when the Empress and Lance turned back to face her.

"So, little bride," sneered the Empress, "it is time!" More hooded robots advanced, but that did not faze Donna one bit. Instead she just smiled broadly.

"You bet it is, spider queen!" Then both either the Empress or Lance knew what was happening, the robots by Donna let go of her and turned their guns on the other robots and they shot. Before the other robots even hit the ground, Donna's had their guns aimed at Lance and the Empress.

"No!" the Empress shrieked in rage.

"I'm out of here." said Lance, making a dash for the door. The Empress lunged for him.

"Lance, watch out!" Donna shouted, but it was too late. The Empress turned back to face her and Lance's body fell to the ground, covered in blood and Donna knew he was dead.

"You next!" the Empress charged towards her. _Blam!_ Both of the robot-Santas shot at once and the Empress fell, but not the ground. She had been so full of anger and rage that she hadn't noticed where she was walking. The blasts knocked her side ways, down it the hole and Donna could hear her shrieking as she fell.

Donna quickly ran over to a set of controls that were in the far corner of the room and pressed a button and giant plates covered the hole.

Donna wandered the now dark streets. She had been afraid that she would also have to take out the Empress's ship, but it had been spotted over the Earth and the government had taken care of that.

She sighed. What a day! She had been able to cure herself of the Hueon particles, but that still left one thing she had to do: she had to find the Doctor. He was out their somewhere.

_Author's Note: Thanks so much to all of you who reviewed last time! Please, keep them coming!_


	8. A Platoon of Judoon on the Moon

_Disclaimer: I own this Doctor Who fanfic...and the air I breathe._

Chapter 8: A Platoon of Judoon on the Moon

Martha started out over the gray surface of the moon and wished Mickey were there beside her. He would have loved this! He had seen some incredible things in his time, but nothing as amazing as the things she had seen and she wished she could share this with him.

Where was he now? Was he out there somewhere? Did he even remember her? Or was he living a totally different life? Had he married someone else? Was he still with Rose? A wave of jealous hit her at that thought.

She had been jealous of Rose before, but that had been over the Doctor, not Mickey. And this time she had more of a right to be jealous. The Doctor hadn't fancied her the way she had him, but Mickey was her husband...or rather he had been.

Wherever he was, Martha was determined to find him, but where to look? The Doctor would know, but he was missing too. She would have to find him first, if she were ever to track down Mickey. But first, she had a job to do.

She squinted as she saw some shapes coming from the distances toward the hospital. Even before she could see them clearly, she knew that it was the Judoon. She took a deep breath. She could do this. She was Martha Jones-Smith, and she could...and she would do this!

Her plan was to find the plasmavore before she could hurt anyone, drug her and then hand her over to the Judoon, who would then return the hospital back to earth and everything would be all fine and dandy. Of course, things rarely go according to plan and Martha had a feeling that it wouldn't be as easy as it sounded.

She was right. Martha headed off to the room where the plasmavore was staying, but she was not there, much to Martha's disappointment, but not surprise. She turned to leave the room, but ran straight into one of the nurses. "Excuse me, but where is the patient that was here?" she asked pointing to the empty bed.

The nurse looked at her as if she had horns growing out of her head. "We are on the moon...the moon! And you're worrying about a patient?"

"Just answer the question!" Martha snapped. She didn't mean to be rude as the nurse was clearly shaken and panicking about their predicament, but this was important. If she didn't find the plasmavore, they were all going to die on the moon.

"How should I know?" wailed the nurse, before running off. Martha was tempted to run after and try to cheer her up and tell her that everything would be alright. But it wouldn't be alright, unless she found that plasmvore and handed her over to the Judoon before they ran out of oxygen.

_Or before she sucks everyone dry. _Martha thought grimly. She froze as it suddenly hit her. _Mr. Stocker!_ She had been so busy concentrating on how to get the plasmavore to the Judoon that she had completely forgotten about the man the plasmavore killed. Martha cursed under her breath and started running towards where she remembered Mr. Stocker's office to be.

Various doors where thrown open and the Judoon began pouring to the hospital. People screamed at the sight of the Rhino-like aliens. They began grabbing people and scanning them. Satisfied that each person was in fact human, they would then mark them on the hand with an "x".

Martha tried to push her way past those who were running away from the Judoon, but she knew that it was hopeless. Poor Mr. Stocker was already dead and there was nothing she could to change that now. The only thing she could do was find the plasmavore before more people were killed.

As a Judoon started to approach her, Martha got an idea. She couldn't just tell the Judoon about the plasmavore, as they would no doubt be suspicious of how she knew so much. But she could show them, Mr. Stoker's body. Hopefully then the Judoon would put the pieces together.

The Judoon was close. Martha turned tail and ran in the opposite direction. "Hey!" The Judoon called after her but Martha didn't stop. She peeked over her shoulder to make sure it was following her. It was.

The Judoon, thank goodness, was not very fast, so Martha had no fear that it would catch her, but she had to run slowly enough so that she wouldn't lose it, while still running fast enough that it would think she was actually trying to get away.

She turned a corner and ducked into the nearest room, which happened to be the ladies' room. She kept her ear to the door. Once she was sure the Judoon had passed by, she opened the door and slammed it shut, catching the Judoon's attention. It turned around and spotted her. Martha began to run in the direction she had come from. The Judoon took off after her.

She quickly found Mr. Stocker's office but she didn't enter it until she was sure the Judoon saw her do so. She spotted Mr. Stocker's body, all dried up and shriveled. She heard the Judoon's footsteps outside the door and opening her mouth let out an ear-piercing scream.

The Judoon threw open the door and Martha pointed to the body, forcing her arm as well as her whole body to shake. "What...what did that?" she asked, putting as much fear in her voice as she could. The Judoon looked from her to the body and Martha thought she could see it frown. It went over to the body and examined it for several seconds. Then it said something in a language Martha didn't know, but she guessed it was cursing.

"What's going on?" she asked, pretending to be completely ignorant of the whole situation. The Judoon turned and marched back over to her. Instead of answering her question, it aimed the scan on her. It wasn't the simple scan that the others had gotten, but a full scan. It lasted a several long seconds. Then the Judoon grunted evidently satisfied.

"Human." it marked Martha's hand with the "x" and opened the door to leave the room. Martha followed it out into the hall. Two more Judoon were there scanning people and the one that had scanned Martha began talking to them in their strange sounding language and Martha figured it was telling the others that there was a plasmavore on the loose in the hospital.

Then something else that Martha had forgotten came back to her. The plasmavore was going to destroy the hospital with one of the x-ray machines! Martha dashed off and the Judoon didn't pay her any attention.

Martha arrived in the room just in time to see the plasmavore about to start up the machinery. "Stop!" Martha shouted and the alien turned to face her, an evil smile on her wrinkled face. Her hand hovered over a button, but Martha didn't give her time to push it. She threw herself at the plasmavore, knocking them both off their feet. The alien scowled and pulled out her straw. "Oh, no you don't!" said Martha, moving to knock it out of her hand, but the plasmavore was surprisingly fast for an old woman and she jabbed the straw at Martha's neck.

Martha rolled and jumped to her feet before the alien could put her mouth to the straw and begin to suck her blood. The alien smirked. "You cannot stop me, my dear. I am..."

"A plasmavore." finished Martha. "You're an alien and you are going to leave this planet and never return!"

The plasmavore stared at her in surprise for a few seconds and then she began to laugh. "You underestimate me."

Martha shook her head. "No, it is you who underestimate me. I've seen and done more things than most people on this planet could possibly imagine let only believe."

The alien raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? A pity then that your life should end like this, but I shall enjoy drinking your blood." She leaped at Martha and once jabbed the straw at her. Martha kicked and struggled but the plasmavore was as strong as she was fast. She put her lips to the straw.

The door flew open and half a dozen Judoon pointed their weapons at the plasmavore. Another two dragged her off of Martha. They held her as their comrades did a full scan. "Plasmavore." the growled and the dragged the plasmavore away.

It was good to be back on earth and Martha took a deep breath of fresh air. All around her was chaos as the people were being examined to be make sure no one had gotten any mysterious diseases while on the moon and reporters were all over the place.

Martha saw husbands embraces wives and a tear fell down her cheek. _Where are you, Mickey?_ Well, she had saved the hospital, so know she just had to find the Doctor...wherever he possibly was. She sighed and began to walk home.

"Martha." She froze and turned to see a familiar face. A woman with red hair was smilingly happily at her.

"Donna!"

_Author's Note: Yeah, so no one is on their own anymore! Now, you know the drill, review, review, review!_


	9. Three is Company

_Disclaimer: If I owned Doctor Who, David would always be the Doctor._

Chapter 9: Three is Company

Jack, Rose, and Mickey laughed as they held each other close. It felt so good to be together again that they couldn't let each other go for a full five minutes. At last, Jack pulled away and studied Rose and Mickey before laughing again. "It's so good to see you...both of you!"

"You too, Jack." said Rose, smiling happily at him. "But what are you doing here?" As glad as she was to see him, she had to admit that he was one of the last people she had expected to see. He didn't answer right away. Instead he looked around as if expecting to see someone else with them. When he realized that it was just him, Rose, and Mickey, he looked back at her.

"Well...it's kind of a long story. I..." he hesitated unsure how to begin. "I woke up and I found myself suddenly back in 1941. I had somehow gone back in time, but not traveled. I had gone back on my own time line. Turns out it was the day I first met you and the Doctor, Rose, only-"

"Only the Doctor wasn't there?" Rose guessed.

Jack blinked in surprise. "Yeah, but neither were you. I was worried sick and I had to save the world all by myself and I nearly got out in time. I used my vortex manipulator and here I am."

Rose sighed and looked over at Mickey. "So, it wasn't just us." Mickey nodded and Rose looked back at Jack. "We woke up this morning and just like you this is the day we first met the Doctor and he wasn't there either. In fact we just finished destroying the Nestene Consciousness without him."

"This isn't good." said Jack. "What could have happened to the Doctor?"

Rose shrugged. "I have no idea." As she spoke, Jack spotted a single tear in her eye and he reached out and gently wiped it way before it could fall.

"I'm sure he's alright, Rose." he said softly. "The Doctor can look after himself. Wherever he is, we'll find him."

"Yeah." Mickey chimed in. "We'll find him, the three of us...together."

"That's right." agreed Jack. "You two aren't alone anymore. You've got me!" Rose chuckled softly and sent both of her friends grateful looks.

"But where do we start?" she asked.

"Let's figure that out tomorrow." suggested Jack. "It's getting late...and rather cold. I think we could all use a good warm night's sleep. Then we'll start thinking things out."

Rose was reluctant to put off the search for the Doctor for even a minute, but she realized Jack was right. What good could they be if they were cold and tried? "You got a place to stay?" The embarrassed look on Jack's face was answer enough. "Mickey, do you think it would be alright if Jack stayed the night at your place?"

Mickey shrugged. "I don't see why not. Come on, Captain." Jack turned to follow Mickey, but not before giving Rose a good night hug.

"See you tomorrow, Rose."

"Not if I see you first, Jack." She blinked back another tear as she remembered that she had once told the Doctor the same thing.

Mickey and Jack walked back to Mickey's place in silence. Both were absorbed in their own thoughts and neither cared to intrude on the other. Yet they were both grateful for the other's presence. Even though they had not gotten along the first time they met, they had come to develop a mutual respect for each other.

Mickey showed Jack the spare room and the latter settled in rather comfortably. "Thanks, Mickey." Mickey nodded and was about to head to his own room, but stopped.

"Do you really think we'll find him?" he asked. Jack sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed and faced Mickey.

"I'm not gonna lie, Mickey. Our chances of finding the Doctor are very, very miniscule. He is the hardest person to track down when you are no longer one of his companions. Believe me, I've tried. But that was before. Now...at first I thought it might just be me, but now that I've learned that it's the same with you and Rose...something is very wrong, Mickey. Nothing makes sense anymore. By all the rules of logic, he should have been there in the 1940s and today for you two. The fact that he's gone...worries me...more than I can say."

Mickey came and sat down next to him. "That's what I was afraid of. How are we going to do this without him? When I woke up this morning...at first I thought it was just a bad dream. When I realized that I really had woken up in my past...well, honestly I freaked. Then when Rose told me it was the day we met the Doctor, I actually began to hope. I knew that he was the only one who could make sense of this. He could get me back. But he's gone. With no explanation, just gone."

Jack nodded grimly. "I know. But we have to find him, Mickey. He's saved ours lives...and this entire planet so many times! Now it's our turn to do something for him."

"I know." said Mickey. "But to be honest, that isn't the only reason I'm doing it. Before...before I woke up back here...in the past...I was married...to Martha."

A smile slowly spread across Jack's face. "Well, I guess Martha has worse taste than I thought."

"Hey!" objected Mickey and Jack laughed.

"Just kidding."

"I have to get back to her, Jack. She...she's my whole world. I love her." Jack nodded understandingly.

"We _have _to find the Doctor." said Jack. "If we do, he can get you back to Martha. But there is another reason we have to get him back." Mickey looked at him, a questioningly look in his eyes. "We have to find him for Rose." Jack clarified. "She's trying to hide it, but she's worried sick about him."

"I know." said Mickey. "She loves him. She always has."

"Does...does it bother you?" Jack asked.

Mickey shook his head. "It used to, but only at first. Then I came to realize that she deserved better than me. That the Doctor was the one for her. I eventually came to think of Rose as more as a friend...and less of a girlfriend. I met Martha and we got married. I am happy with my life...or rather the way it was before we ended up here. But Rose is still a good friend and I want her to be happy."

"I hope we find him." said Jack. "So her sake."

The three met again the next morning at Rose's flat. Jackie was out and Rose had called in sick at work, so they had the place to themselves.

Even thought Rose assured them that she had gotten a good night's sleep, Jack could tell just by looking at her that she been up all night worrying about the Doctor. He shook his head, but kept quiet.

"So, where do we start?" she asked, repeating her question from the previous night. "Any ideas?"

"Sadly, no." said Mickey and the two of them then turned to look at Jack. "Captain?"

Jack didn't answer, instead he sat with his eyes closed and Rose and Mickey could tell that he was thinking. Neither dared interrupt. Finally he opened his eyes and Rose looked at him expectantly.

"Perhaps," he said slowly, "it would help if I knew the exact details of everything that had happened when you met the Doctor?"

Rose nodded and then proceeded to tell him everything she could remember of those strange, yet exciting two days. Mickey broke in adding a few things here and there, but for the most part kept quiet.

Once she was done, Jack sighed. "There's not a lot to go on." he admitted.

Rose nodded dejectedly. "I know." She bit her lip and Jack could tell that she was once again struggling not to cry. "It won't be so bad, if we just knew where to start!"

She hated this. Just sitting here in her mum's flat when only God knows what had happened to the Doctor was killing her. She couldn't believe he was dead, she just couldn't! She had to believe that he was out there...somewhere and that they would find him. But how when they didn't even have a place to start.

"I know!" said Mickey suddenly. "Why don't we just start the last place he was seen? Rose, what were you and the Doctor doing before you woke up here?"

"Yeah." agreed Jack. "What sort of things were you two up to?" They both looked at her so expectantly that Rose knew she was caught. She couldn't lie to them. She didn't want to, but she had to tell them the truth.

"I..I wasn't with the Doctor." she said quietly.

Jack and Mickey's expectant looks turned to surprise. "What?" asked Mickey. "Why not?"

"I...I was ...left behind in the alternate universe...with the Human/Metacrisis Doctor." Silence filled the room and no one even dared to do such much as breath for several seconds.

"Rose," said Mickey at last, "why didn't you say?"

"Because it was too painful." she said, her face flooding with tears that she did not even attempt to wipe away.

"I'm gonna punch him next time I see him." said Jack, vehemently.

"Jack!" Rose gasped in astonishment.

"I meant it, Rose." said Jack, his voice edged with anger. "He left you behind? How dare he!"

"He thought he was doing what was best for him, Jack." Rose said, feeling it necessary to defend the Doctor. "He...he knew thought that I would be better off...with someone who would age at the same rate I did."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean that the Human Doctor is the Doctor." put in Jack.

"No," Rose agreed, "he wasn't the Doctor...not in the ways that really mattered anyone, but don't hate the Doctor, Jack! Please."

Jack sighed. "Very well, but I still think he deserves a punch to the face."

Rose shook her head. "I just hope we can find him."

"Otherwise we'll have to live normal lives." said Mickey, not sounding at all pleased with the prospect. "I'll have to live through these next few years again. 2005. Not the greatest year of my life."

Rose gasped and both looked at her. A sudden thought...a memory had come back to her mind at Mickey's words. A memory she had not thought about in ages. "That's it." she breathed. "That's it!" she exclaimed jumping to her feet.

"What?" said Mickey and Jack. "What's it?"

"New Year's Day, 2005. Mum and I were walking home. Then she went off some place else and I went on alone. On my way, I had an encounter with a man, a man whose face I couldn't see clearly because he was hidden in the shadows. I thought he was drunk. He asked me what year it was and after I told him. He told me that he bet I was going to have a really great year!" Mickey and Jack just blinked as if they didn't quite get what she was trying to say. "It was the Doctor!"

"Rose, are you sure?" asked Jack. Rose nodded.

"I hadn't thought about that in years, but I know it was him. I'd know that voice anywhere." Her face seemed to glow she was so happy. Then it vanished and was suddenly replaced with panic. "He wasn't drunk." she said, realization gripping her. "He was in pain." Her eyes widened with fear. "He was hurt..and alone. We have to got to find him!"

"News Years Day, 2005?" asked Jack. "You sure?"

Rose nodded. "Yes, just after shortly after midnight, shortly after the turn of the year."

"Then that's where we'll start." said Jack.

Rose was still worried about the Doctor, but now at last they somewhere to start and Rose could fell hope rising in her once more as she and Mickey laid their hands on Jack's vortex manipulator.

_Author's Note: Yeah! Phew! I didn't think I was going to get this chapter up in time! As usual, review please!_


	10. A Dynamic Duo

_Disclaimer: Do I own Doctor Who? Is David Tennant currently playing the Doctor? Well, then I think you know the answer._

Chapter 10: A Dynamic Duo

"What on earth are you doing here?" asked Martha as Donna lead her away from the hospital and the press. "Aren't you traveling with the Doctor? Speaking of which, is he here?" Martha looked around expecting to see him among the crowd.

"No." said Donna. "He isn't here." Something in her tone worried Martha. Had something happened to him? He was her hurt...or worse, was he dead? That last thought was so ridiculous that Martha nearly laughed out loud, but the look on Donna's face stopped her.

"Donna? Has something happened? Where is he? Where is the Doctor?" Donna sighed and sat down on a bench that over looked the traffic. Martha sat down next to her, waiting for her friend to explain what was happening.

"I wish I knew." Donna said finally. "He's not anywhere. I can't find him. A few months ago a woke up back in my past on the very day that I first met him. Only he wasn't there. I've lived through these next few months hoping he would show up. Then today there was the thing on the news about the hospital and I remembered that was how you and the Doctor first met. So I came here. Hoping to find him."

Martha listened in silence. So the Doctor hadn't shown up for Donna either? What had happened? "Do you think it had anything to do with what you were up to...I mean whatever it was...before you woke up in your past? What were you and the Doctor...and Rose doing?"

Donna stiffened and Martha guessed that she had hit upon a touchy topic. "We weren't. That is to say Rose and I weren't. I don't know what the Doctor was up to. We weren't traveling with him."

"What?" Martha couldn't believe her ears. All this time she and Mickey had naturally assumed that the Doctor, Donna, and Rose would travel together. Had she been wrong to assume that? No, she decided, that assumption made perfect sense. Donna had become the Doctor's best friend and Martha just couldn't understand why the Doctor would leave her behind. But if that didn't make any sense, the idea of the Doctor leaving Rose behind was even more incredulous. It didn't take a great genius to know that Rose was the love of the Doctor's life. He had missed her so much when she was gone and it was therefore natural to assume that she would continue traveling with him when she got back. So what had gone wrong? "Why? What happened?"

"The metacrisis." said Donna and Martha could sense the bitterness in that one word. "The metacrisis created another Doctor. You remember." Martha nodded. "Well, because the metacrisis was a cross between me and the Doctor's hand...this other Doctor...well, he was human...mostly. He had only one heart and he wouldn't be able to regenerate."

"What does that have to do with anything?" asked Martha, curiously.

"Everything. Well, two things." said Donna. "Firstly, it was because of that that the Doctor left Rose and the human doctor behind in the alternate universe."

Martha gasped. "What? Why?"

"Because he knew that if Rose stayed with him, one day sooner or late...one way or another...she would die and because of that they could never truly be together. He was giving her the chance to live a normal life with someone who loved her...and would age at the same rate she would."

Martha understood this, but how had Rose felt about that? Martha knew that if she had been in her place, she wouldn't have been thrilled. Would that other doctor love her the same way the original did? Martha doubted it. The human doctor might have the real Doctor's memories, but that didn't necessarily make him the Doctor. Martha understood that from personal experience. Her clone had had her memories, but that hadn't made that clone her.

However, Martha could tell that Donna thought the Doctor had done the right thing so Martha decided to keep her own doubts to herself. "And what about you?"

"The metacrisis caused me to have Time Lord knowledge placed in my brain. Unfortunately, that isn't meant to happen. Time Lord knowledge does not belong in a human brain and it was killing me...literally. It was burning up my mind and the Doctor had to erase all my memories of him and our travels together in order to save my life."

"How awful!" said Martha and she shuddered. She tried to imagine having all her memories of the Doctor erased. "But what happened? I mean, you obviously remember him now."

"For the next few years I lived a normal life. I met a nice guy named Shawn Temple and we got married."

"Congratulations." said Martha, but she failed to disguise the sadness in her voice and she found she was rubbing her finger where she usually wore her wedding ring. A ring that was none existent now.

Donna looked at her quizzically as if she sensed something wasn't quite right.

"I also got married." Martha said. "To Mickey Smith. But not any more. Not sense waking up this morning and finding myself in my past." Donna gave her a sympathetic smile. She too had gone through that. "Any way how did you get your memory back?" Martha asked, eager to get the conversation back on track.

"When I woke up back in my past, my memory came back." Donna said. "So, did the Time Lord knowledge."

"But...wouldn't that have killed you?" asked Martha. "And how did come back seeing as how the metacrisis hasn't happened...yet?"

"I have a theory about that." said Donna. "It seems that even though the past has changed, there are still echoes of the way things used to be. For me it's the Time Lord knowledge floating around inside my head, yet it isn't as strong as it used to be. Yet at the same time it isn't killing me because it never happened. Doesn't entirely make sense, I know."

"It's like a paradox." said Martha and Donna nodded.

"Exactly, a paradox." agreed Donna she smiled but then the smile disappeared. "I also have a theory as to what might have happened to the Doctor."

"Really?" Martha pricked up her ears at this. "What is it?"

"He's been erased from time and space." said Donna flatly and Martha could only gawk at her.

"What...? How...?"

"I don't know." Donna admitted. "But it's like he never even existed."

"But if that's true," said Martha, "then how come we remember him? If he never existed...shouldn't we have forgotten him?"

"Not exactly." said Donna. "We traveled with him. We've traveled in time and that changes our perception."

"You could be wrong." said Martha. Donna shook her head sadly, and Martha couldn't help but think that she had never seen her friend so serious.

"I wish I were." said Donna.

"But how can you be sure?"

"I...I just know...he...he's gone. I just feel it." Donna spoke with such conviction that Martha was forced to believe her.

"So," she said slowly, "what do we do now?"

Donna had tears in her eyes as she said, "I honestly don't know." They sat in silence for several minutes. They just watched the traffic as it passed by. Neither one knew what to say or what to do.

"The last time I saw the Doctor," Martha said once she couldn't bear the silence any more, "Mickey and I were tracking down a Sontaran. And there he was. With no explanation. He didn't say anything. He just looked at us and then walked off. I thought something was wrong at the time, but now I'm sure of it."

Donna nodded. "He came to my wedding. I didn't see him, mind you, but he gave my granddad and my mum a wedding present to give to me."

"What was it?" asked Martha.

"A lottery ticket. It was triple-roll-over that week and we ended up winning. Imagine that!" she rolled her eyes and Martha laughed in spite of herself.

"Donna." a sudden thought had just struck her. "If we remember the Doctor because we traveled with him, doesn't that mean that his other companions do to, like Mickey, Jack, and Rose? Wouldn't they have woken up they day they first met him?"

Donna jumped to her feet and Martha could see a new fire in her eyes. "Martha Jones, you are brilliant!"

"So, what's the plan?" asked Martha as the two women took off running down the street.

"Find the others."

"Great. How?"

"Time travel."

"Uh...okay...but where to? And how? We don't have a time machine."

Donna turned and gave her an wide grin. "What do you think I've been doing these last few months?"

"You built a time machine? How?"

"With some difficulty." Donna admitted. "I was going to use it and try and find the Doctor, but the more time past the more certain I became that he was gone. When I saw the news about the hospital...well, that was my last hope. But I never thought of using it to find the others until you mentioned it."

"But where will we start?" asked Martha.

* * *

"Where he was first seen." said Donna. "We're going to find Rose."

_Author's Note: Phew! That's over! I was afraid I wouldn't get this chapter done in time. Anyways, review!_


	11. Ghosts of the Past

Disclaimer: Rose is still trapped in the alternate universe with the human doctor. Therefore, we must logically conclude that I do not own Doctor Who.

Chapter 11: Ghosts of the Past

The first thing Rose felt was the cold and then the soft pelt of snow as it fell on her. She shivered slightly. She blinked and found that she was standing in the middle of a snow covered street, Jack and Mickey standing on either side of her. Both men were holding their stomachs and groaning.

"You okay?" she asked, looking back and forth between them with concern. They looked sicked and she was suddenly afraid that they might be coming down with something.

"Why do I feel as if I had just been beaten up in a blender?" asked Mickey.

"Time traveling with a vortex manipulator is not like traveling in the TARDIS." Jack explained, still clutching his stomach. "With the TARDIS you get a nice linear travel, with a vortex manipulator...you bounce. We're currently experience time travel sickness. It will wear off soon."

Mickey nodded. "How about you, Rose? How you feeling?"

"I'm fine." Rose answered honestly, but she was also feeling slightly puzzled. How come Jack and Mickey had gotten "time travel sickness" but she hadn't? 

Jack obviously was thinking the same thing because he looked at her, studying her careful. He frowned. "That's strange."

"What is?" asked Mickey.

"Rose isn't experiencing the effects of traveling with a vortex manipulator. She should be, but she isn't."

"Maybe some people are immune to it." suggested Mickey.

Jack shook his head. "No. Everyone feels it. Even the Doctor did."

Rose's brow furrowed in confusion. "Why would the Doctor travel with a vortex manipulator when he has the TARDIS?"

"Long story." said Jack. "Which I'll explain later. First, we have a job to do." No sooner where the words out of his mouth, then the sound of two pairs of feet making their way through the snow towards the three friends reached their ears.

"It's late now." said a very familiar voice and Rose gasped when she realized it was her own. Jack quickly grabbed her arm and Rose grabbed Mickey's and the three of them hide behind a dumpster. None of them had to say what they were all thinking: that they could not be seen. They were more than aware of what could happen if younger Rose and Jackie spotted them.

"It's midnight," continued the other Rose, "I've missed it. Mickey's going to be calling me any minute. This is your fault."

"No, it's not!" objected Jackie. "It's Jimbo's. He said he was going to give us a lift, then he says his axial's broke. I can't help it." Rose found that she was mouth the words of the conversation as her memories of this night came back to her.

"Get rid of him, Mum. He's useless." she whispered, only for them it to be repeated seconds later by her younger self.

"Listen to you, with a mechanic! Be fair, though, at my time of life I'm not going to do much better." Rose felt a tear roll down her cheek. She had been so absorbed in her own happiness in finding the Doctor, that she had completely forgotten her mum's. Unless they found him, Jackie would never met the alternate Pete.

"Don't be like that." she heard herself say. "You never know. There might be someone out there."

"Maybe. Someday." the wistfulness in Jackie's voice was obvious. Then her tone changed. "Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year!" the younger Rose repeated. A brief silence followed and Rose knew that she and her mum where sharing a hug. "Don't stay out all night."

"Try and stop me." From the sound of footsteps, Rose and the others could tell that Jackie and the other Rose had gone off in different directions.

Rose held her breath, straining to listen to what would happen next. She knew better than to get her hopes up that the Doctor would be there as she remembered, but she couldn't help it. She closed her eyes, praying that she would her his voice.

Nothing. Instead all she heard was the sound of a door clanging softly shut and Rose knew that her younger self was out of sight. She sighed and slowly stepped out from behind the dumpster. Jack and Mickey followed.

Rose scanned the area and moving forward she saw the space hidden in the shadows where the Doctor had stood in her memory. She moved toward it and another tear fell as she placed her hand on the wall. She closed her eyes and pictured him standing there, watching her and talking to her. She remembered him groaning in pain. What had been wrong with him? Was he even still alive?

Rose found that she was shaking and sobbing. She felt Jack's hands on her shoulders. She turned around to face him. "Where is he, Jack?" she asked trembling. "What's happened to him?"

Jack shook his head. "I wish I knew, Rose. But we will find him!" Rose nodded and took a deep breath, trying to remain in control. She couldn't just break down.

"Where to now?" asked Mickey.

Rose sighed and then froze. She blinked, but whatever it was she thought she had seen was gone. Wait...there it was again. She blinked a second time and once again it was gone, but this time she was absolutely sure: she had just seen an Ood.

What was an Ood doing on Earth? What was it doing here on this particular day, at this particular point in time? Was it a coincidence? Rose seriously doubted it. Whatever it was doing here, it had something to do with the Doctor. Whatever it was, Rose was going to find out.

There it was again! Rose began to run toward it. "Rose?" Jack called after her as he and Mickey began to run after her. "What is it?"

The Ood had disappeared again as Rose reached the spot where she was sure it had been only mere moments ago. She sighed in disappointment.

"What is it? Did you see something?" asked Jack as he and Mickey reached her. Rose nodded. "What?"

"I saw an Ood." said Rose and Jack frowned. Mickey looked puzzled.

"What's an Ood?" he asked.

"They're aliens." Rose said. "They're bred to be a slave race. The Doctor and I had...an encounter with them once."

"But the Ood won't be around for several more centuries at least." said Jack. "What was one doing here?"

"I don't know." said Rose. "But I'm sure it had something to do with the Doctor."

"Guys, check this out." said Mickey. He was kneeling a few feet away from where the others were standing and was staring at the ground. He pointed to something. An imprint on the snow. An imprint in the shape of a fairly large square.

Jack and Rose bent down next to him and looked at it closely. Rose gasped and looked over at Jack as realization dawned on both of them. They looked at Mickey and saw that he was thinking the same thing. "The TARDIS." all three said in unison.

"But how?" added Mickey. "The Doctor wasn't here." He looked to Jack for answers, but the captain just shook his head. He was just as puzzled as Mickey was.

"Time can be rewritten," said Rose in a whisper. Jack and Mickey looked at her. She had spoken not as if she were stating a fact, but as if...as if she were remembering something...or something was speaking through. "Time can be rewritten." she repeated, still whispering. "People can fall out of time, but they always leave traces."

"Rose?" Jack asked and Rose shook herself, like one coming out of a dream. She frowned, looking puzzled.

"What did I just say?" she asked. Jack repeated her words, but was studying her closely all the while. First, she hadn't gotten time travel sickness...now this. Something was going on with Rose and Jack intended to find out what.

"So, you think the Doctor's fallen out of time?" asked Mickey skeptically. He didn't quite understand how that was possible...but then again was waking up back in your past possible? A lot of things had been happening lately that didn't make sense. "And this is just a trace left behind?

Rose knew it sounded insane, but when Mickey said it...she was sure that was exactly what was going on. "If we follow the traces," she said thoughtfully, "they should lead us to the Doctor...or the at the very least the answer to what happened."

Jack mulled this over for a few seconds. "We only have one trace, Rose. It isn't much of a trail."

"But it's all we have to go on!" said Rose. Jack sighed. She was right, but how how could they go on just one lead. They had no idea where the next trace would be.

"Rose," he said gently, "I know you want to find the Doctor. We all do, but we cannot just go rushing blindly into this. We have no idea where the trail will lead."

"But I cannot just stand here while the Doctor maybe in danger." said Rose, feeling her temper starting to rise.

"And the Doctor would never forgive me if you got hurt." Jack countered. "My first priority is to keep you safe...for his sake."

Rose's anger vanished. She knew she could get hurt, Jack was right about that, but she would never forgive herself if anything happened to the Doctor.

"Um, guys?" Mickey pointed to something behind them and Jack and Rose turned around. The Ood was back and he was just staring a them.

Rose got to her feet. She approached him warily. "Where's the Doctor? Do you know what's happened to him?"

"His song has ended," the Ood replied, "but his story continues."

"What does that mean?" asked Rose.

Jack had a sinking feeling and he thought he understood the Ood's meaning. "Rose, you said the Doctor was in pain when you saw him here?"

Rose nodded. "What has that got to do with anything?" He took a deep breath, unsure how to break this to her. 

* * *

"Everything. I think the Ood means that the Doctor has regenerated."

_Author's Note: Review, review, review!_


	12. The Search for Rose

_Disclaimer: Seeing as how my three favorite companions (Rose, Donna, and Jack) are not on the show currently, it looks like I do not own Doctor Who._

Chapter 12: The Search for Rose

"A vortex a manipulator!" cried Martha when she saw what it was that Donna had created. The red head smiled.

"Correct! Took me forever to figure out the right amount of fusion mixed with..."

"Right." Martha quickly interrupted, afraid that Donna would go into details. "Does it work?" Donna rolled her eyes.

"Of course! Do you think I'm stupid enough to use it without testing it first?" Martha put her hands up in surrender.

"The big question," Donna said thoughtfully, "is where to start. Any ideas?"

"What about the day the Doctor and Rose first met?" Martha suggested. "If we're right..." she didn't need to complete that line of thought for Donna got her point and nodded.

"Slight problem, though." Donna said. "We don't know the exact day they met. I'm not sure I even know what year."

Martha tried to remember everything the Doctor had ever told her about Rose, looking for some clue as to when they possibly could have met. But the Doctor hadn't told her that much. It had been a painful topic for him and one that he had tried to avoid as much as possible.

"He never told you?" Martha asked, hoping that Donna had been able to glean more from him the Doctor than she had. Donna shook her head.

"Wait a minute." she said, suddenly remembering. "Well, the first time we met was this past Christmas. Christmas 2007. He did say that he had spent the previous Christmas with her family. So, that would have been Christmas 2006. So, they met some time before that, but I'm not sure when."

Martha nodded. "Christmas 2006. Sounds like a good a place to start as any."

"Alright then." said Donna. "Alonzy!" she shook herself. "Did I just say that? Oh, man! I'm starting to sound like him!" Martha chuckled.

Donna slipped the vortex manipulator onto her wrist. Martha placed her hand on it and in a matter of seconds both women were gone.

When Martha opened her eyes, she found that she and Donna were standing in the middle of a street that was oddly deserted. Then the nausea hit her. "Oh, man!" she groaned and out of the corner of her eye she could see that Donna was hunched over and was holding her stomach. "I can't believe I actually forgot how bad traveling with a vortex manipulator is."

"Yeah." Donna agreed.

It took a few seconds for the sickness to wear off and when it finally did, Martha and Donna started to look around.

"Are you sure we're in the right place?" Martha asked. "I remember Jack once saying that you bounce a lot when you use a vortex manipulator."

"One way to find out." said Donna as she headed to an abandoned news paper stand. She grabbed the nearest paper and after glancing at it brief showed it Martha. "Christmas Day, 2006." She glanced around, puzzled. "Where is everyone?"

Martha snorted. "Are you serious? Christmas Day, 2006. Don't you remember?" Donna blushed a little guiltily.

"I was a little hung over." Martha sighed and the pointed up towards the sky. Donna followed the direction of her finger and whistled. Above them was the biggest space ship she had ever seen. "Did they take everyone?"

Martha shook her head. "About one-third of the earth's population is up on roof-tops getting ready to jump. Their families are with them begging them to come down and the rest are all huddled around their tellies, watching, waiting to see what happens next."

"What did happen?"

"At the time it just seemed like the aliens just withdraw and the people who were getting to jump suddenly come to their senses, but I'm guessing it has actually something to do with the Doctor."

"But he's not here." said Donna, horror dawning on her.

"I know." said Martha grimly.

Just then a door to a nearby building was thrown open and a middle aged woman with blond hair was running towards them. Martha and Donna had only met her once, but they both recognized her. "Jackie?"

"I thought I recognized you too!" she said, panting for breath as she stopped before them. "What did you find out? Anything?" She was shaking and was visibly distraught.

Donna blinked. "Um..."

"You said you'd tell me if you find out anything. It's been over a year! My daughter has been missing for that long! You promised you'd tell me if you found her or any information. So, please, what did you find?"

It suddenly occurred to both Donna and Martha that Jackie was talking about Rose. Her disappearance obviously had to do with the Doctor. "Right!" Donna said quickly. "We are still searching, but don't worry! We haven't given up hope. Now, do you remember the exact day it was that she disappeared?"

Jackie nodded. "Oh, yes! March 27th. She said she wasn't feeling well, so she called in sick for work. I went out on an errand and when I got back she wasn't gone. I tried calling her boyfriend, Mickey, but I

couldn't get through. He's been missing too. The police think that he killed her and then took off." Jackie broke down at that last part.

Martha clenched her hands to keep herself from saying something that she knew she was going to regret. She knew perfectly well that Mickey was entirely innocent, and it anger her to think that anyone could possibly believe that about her husband.

Wait a minute! If Mickey was also missing...than that mean that he was with Rose and if they found Rose, they would find Mickey! It took all of her self-control not to grab Donna and go looking for them right then. It would not do to disappear in front of Jackie.

"Thanks." said Donna. "That should help." Jackie nodded and then turned back and reentered the building.

"Let's go!" said Martha, moving to touch Donna's vortex manipulator. Donna took a step back.

"Aren't your forget something?" She pointed up to the sky.

"Oh, right." Martha knew she shouldn't be upset that they had to save the world before finding Mickey...and Rose, but she wanted nothing more to be reunited with her husband.

Donna smiled sympathetically. "I know, Martha. We'll find Mickey and Rose once we finish saving the world."

No sooner were the words out of her mouth then something was shot from the earth and struck the space ship, destroying it completely.

"Well." said Martha after a few seconds. "That's convenient."

Donna frowned. "Who did that?" Martha could tell from her tone she was far from pleased and Martha realized that if the Doctor were here, he would not be happy about that either.

"Probably Torchwood." said Martha.

"Murderers." Donna whispered under her breath, but Martha still heard her. She waited a few seconds before daring to suggest that they be on their way. "I suppose so." Donna was still not happy about what they had done, but there was nothing they could do know, and they needed to find Rose, so that they could find the Doctor.

"This is the place?" asked Martha as she and Donna knocked on the door to the flat Rose shared with her mum. The door swung open to reveal a teary eyed Jackie.

"Mrs. Tyler?" asked Donna. "We're with the police. I understand that your daughter is missing." Jackie nodded. Martha was surprised at how easily Donna could lie.

"That's right. Please, come in." Martha and Donna were lead into the living room. Donna was pleased to see a calendar that showed that they had indeed arrived on March 27th, 2005.

"Do you have any recent pictures?" Martha asked, just to make their cover story sound plausible.

Jackie nodded and took a picture out of her wallet and handed it to Martha. It was a picture with Rose, Jackie, and Mickey. Martha felt a pang of jealously seeing Rose and Mickey together. _Get a grip, Martha! He married you, not Rose._

"And she's been gone for...?" asked Donna.

"Twelve hours." answered Jackie. "She left her mobile at home, which she never does. I've called all her mates, but no one's seen or heard from her."

"What about him?" asked Martha, pointing to Mickey in the picture. She wanted to make sure that Mickey was with Rose.

"That's Mickey Smith. Her boyfriend."

"When did you last see him?"

"This morning actually. He was hear before I went out." said Jackie. "And...and there was another man with him. Someone I had never seen before."

"Another man?" asked Donna. "What did he look like?"

"Well, he was wearing one of those old jackets. Like something they would have worn during World War II."

That caught Martha's attention. "Did you get his name?"

"Mickey just called him Jack. So did Rose. I guess she knew him, though I certainly didn't."

A small smile played around the corners of Martha's mouth. Captain Jack Harkness. So, he had been here.

"Thank you for your time, Mrs. Tyler." said Donna, gesturing for Martha that it was time for them to leave.

"If you find out anything, anything at all, you will tell me?" pleaded Jackie, desperately. Donna nodded.

"We certainly will. I promise."

"Good news," said Martha as she and Donna walked down the street, "Mickey and Rose are with Captain Jack. Bad news, he too has a vortex manipulator and if he's got it working again, they would be anywhere...anywhen!"

Donna hardly heard what Martha said. The mention of Captain Jack's name had brought back certain memories. She remembered the handsome man that she had liked from the moment she first laid eyes on him. She tried to banish all thoughts of him. She tried to remind herself of Shawn. _But, _her rebellious side said, _you aren't married to him and won't be for a few more years. So..._ She shook herself.

Martha's words brought her back to earth. "True." she smiled. "But I have an idea."

"What are we doing exactly?" asked Martha. The two of them were sneaking around and were peaking their heads over the window into the Tylers' flat.

"We went back in time by a couple of hours." Donna whispered. "If we can overhear their conversation, we can probably figure out where they went and met them there."

Martha caught sight of Mickey and she had to will herself not to burst into the flat and throw herself in her arms. She barely noticed the other two people in the room and she certainly did not notice a similar look on Donna's face as she looked at Captain Jack.

* * *

They listened in silence for a few minutes. Then they watched as their three friends disappeared. Donna turned to Martha and smiled. "So, January the 1st of 2005 it is."

_Author's Note: Phew! Certainly not the best chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it all the same. So, you know the drill! Review!_


	13. All for One

_Disclaimer: I own Doctor Who and David Tennant is still the Doctor...I wish!_

Chapter 13: All for One

She looked at Jack and then back at the Ood, who had disappeared once again. _Regenerated._ That one word sent Rose's world spinning. All this time she should have been considering the possibility of that happening. Heck! She saw the signs! He had been in pain, yet she hadn't suspected a thing. How thick could she be? 

But now that she thought about it, Rose couldn't decide whether the news was welcome or not. She had been hoping, expecting to find him the way she had left him. Now realizing that she would never see that boyish grin of his again, nearly tore her heart in two.

Her mind drifted back to the first time she had seen him regenerate. The shock and disbelief had been overwhelming. Yet...she had quickly come to realize that he was still in essence the same man..eh...Time Lord. Sure he had a new body and a new personality, but the fundamentals...all that really matter, it that way he was still the Doctor. _And he always will be._

"Rose?" Jack put a supportive hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I know you were hoping he would stay the same."

"What does it matter?" she asked. "He is still the Doctor. If it came down to a choice between him dying or him regenerating, I would choose the latter every time. He is the Doctor. It doesn't matter what form he takes, he is still the same person and I will always love him...no matter what!"

"Well said, Rose." Rose, Jack, and Mickey spun around to see two very familiar looking people staying a few yards away. As soon as Mickey saw them, he rushed forward. Martha broke away from Donna's side and husband and wife caught each other in a full, yet gentle tackled. Jack laughed.

Rose smiled, but it was a tight smile. She could not help remembering when she and the Doctor had run towards each other. _If only that Dalek hadn't gotten in the way... _Would her life have been different? Would have the metacrisis ever happened? Maybe she would have stayed with the Doctor. _Maybe._

She shook herself. There was no point in thinking about what _might_ have been. She had to focus on what was going on right here, right now. And right now two of your friends had just been reunited. They were alternating between laughing, crying, and kissing.

"Hey, you." Rose jumped slightly. She had been so lost in her own thoughts that she hadn't notice Donna coming up to her. Rose smiled. She had always liked the red-head and was delighted to see her again.

"Hey, yourself." Donna laughed and the two embraced. "What have you been up to?" A thought struck her. "The Doctor...is...was he alright...you know..."

Donna sighed and pulled away. "Rose, I didn't travel with the Doctor. The metacrisis...well, the Time Lord knowledge inside my head was killing me...literally. The Doctor...he had to erase my memories to save my life."

Rose nearly fell backwards. All this time she had been, if not comforted, at least consoled by the fact that he wasn't alone. She had believed that he had Donna with him, but now to learn that that wasn't the case... "You mean he's alone?"

Donna shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. You know how he is. He might have picked up one or two other companions since then."

Rose just nodded. It was a lot to take in in so little time. Donna shifted uncomfortably. "Rose, where...where you happy?" Rose looked up at her in surprise at the question. "I mean...after he...left you behind with the human doctor?" As much as Donna had wanted to admit that the Doctor had done the right thing, her conversation with Martha had made her question that.

"I wish for his sake I could say I was," answered Rose, "but in all honesty, no, I wasn't." Donna sighed.  
"He loved you, you know." said Donna and Rose just stood there, listening, hoping...wanting to believe that what Donna said was true. "He left you behind because he honestly believed that you would have a better life...without him...and with his human...copy."

Rose didn't know what to say. Ever since that day that the Doctor had left her in the alternate universe with "John Smith", Rose had spent half her time questioning why the Doctor did it, and the other half trying to convince herself that it was because he did care. She only hoped that Donna was right.

"Now that is what I'm talking about!" shouted Jack. Rose and Donna turned to see that he, Mickey, and Martha were having an animated conversation. Rose and Donna looked at each other once before going to join them.

Martha and Rose exchanged hugs. "Right!" said Jack, clapping his hands just once. "Catch up time." Rose listened patiently as Donna and Martha explained everything that they had gone through since seeing each other last. Mickey elaborated on certain parts of Martha's narrative before going on to say what Rose and he had been up to since waking up in the past. Then it was Jack's turn to speak. Once he was done he looked over at Rose.

"I have nothing to add." she said. He nodded.

"So, what's the plan?" asked Martha, holding tightly onto Mickey's hand.

"Well, it isn't much of a plan," Jack admitted, after a slight sidewise glance at Rose, "but we...well, we were thinking of following the traces of the Doctor. Unfortunately, we only have one...the one left by the TARDIS."

"The TARDIS," said Donna thoughtfully. "That's it!" she beamed and went over to where the imprint of the TARDIS was.

"What? What is it?" asked Rose coming over to join her, followed by the others.

"Whenever the TARDIS takes off someplace, it gives off a bunch of residual energy. Time energy, if you will. If I'm correct, if we can use the energy, combine it with Jack's and mine vortex manipulators and read where the TARDIS went from here."

"Donna, that is brilliant!" said Jack, giving her a full fledged smile. Donna blushed and hoped he didn't notice.

"How long will it take?" asked Rose anxiously.

"I don't know." Donna admitted. "Unfortunately, the time energy is already starting to fade. I'll have to work quickly to compute where...and when the TARDIS landed."

Mickey nodded. "Alright then. Come, guys. Let's give Donna some space, so she can concentrate." Mickey and Martha walked a few feet away. Rose hesitated before following them, but Jack stayed where he was.

Half of Donna's mind quickly began to work out the correct numbers and her fingers flew over her vortex manipulator, pressing button. The other half was totally distracted by Jack's presence. Did he want something? Would he actually talk to her? The first time they met, Donna had gotten the distinct impressive that she wasn't exactly his type. That it had hurt her more than a little, which surprised her.

When he sat down next to her, all thoughts of Shawn went out the window.

"Do you notice anything unusual about Rose?" he asked. The question surprised her. It wasn't what she had been expecting, nor what she had been hoping for, but hey, he was at least talking to her.

"No, not really. Why do you ask?"

Jack sighed. "It's just that, for one thing she didn't experience time travel sickness when we used the vortex manipulator." That caught Donna's attention. She now understood what Jack was getting at. Something was wrong. Everyone got sick when traveling by vortex manipulator. _Everyone._ Even Time Lords.

"What else?"

He quickly explained what Rose had said about time being rewritten. "It isn't so much what she said, that concerns me." said Jack. "It was...well, _how_ she said it. It was like...for a brief moment she had gone into a trance. Then afterwards she couldn't even remember saying it. Any ideas what might be going on?"

Donna shook her head. "No, but I'll certainly be keeping an eye on her. If I figure anything out, I'll let you know." Donna looked over at him and saw that he was staring intently at Rose. "You care about her, don't you?"

Jack shrugged. "I guess, but not in the romantic kind of way. I guess you could say that I think of Rose as a younger sister. I feel responsible for her. With the Doctor not being here...I feel like I have to protect her, keep her safe...for his sake."

Donna nodded, understandingly. "I know what you mean. I feel the same way. And judging by the way Martha and Mickey are talking to her, they feel it too. Rose...well, she's special. I can understand why the Doctor loves her."

"Does he?" asked Jack. "I know that he's fond of her, but love? I used to think that, but from what I understand he left her behind with...a human clone of himself, which is not the same thing as being with the original."

"He thought he was doing the right thing for her, Jack." said Donna. "He knew that one day she would die and he would have to move on without her and because of that they could never truly be. He wanted to give her a chance with someone who would love her as he does."

"And I bet you ten to one he's regretting it." said Jack and Donna looked at him. There had been a sad tone to his voice and he had spoken as if from experience. Donna opened her mouth to ask him about it, but decided against it.

"Done." she said. "Now, let me see yours." Jack handed her his vortex manipulator and in a few minutes, both of them were ready. "Okay, you guys time to go!"

Rose, Mickey, and Martha hurried back to them. Mickey and Martha decided to go with Donna, while Rose would go with Jack. "See you there!" she said. _Wherever there is. _

_Author's Note: You know the drill!_


	14. The Girl That Time Forgot

_Disclaimer: I own Doctor Who and the BBC is the one coming up with fanfiction._

Chapter 14: The Girl That Time Forgot

"Not again!" groaned Mickey, nearly collapsing to the ground. Jack, Donna, and Martha weren't faring much better. The only one not groaning and holding her stomach was Rose.

She studied their surroundings and noted they had landed in someone's yard. There was a swing and smashed up shed. The house looked...quaint, but it wasn't much. Rose wondered what the Doctor had been doing here. "So, where and when are we?"

"Leadworth. 1997." said Donna. She frowned as she checked her vortex manipulator. "And we're off...by about twelve hours."

"Before or after the Doctor arrived?" asked Jack.

"After, fortunately."

"Good." said Mickey. "At least we don't have to wait around."

"You are who?" The group turned to see a little girl of about seven years of age starting at them. She had hair as red as Donna's and she spoke with a Scottish accent.

"Oh, hello!" said Rose smiling at the girl. "I'm Rose and these are my friends, Jack, Donna, Mickey, and his wife Martha. What's your name?"

"Amelia Pond." the girl looked at them a bit suspiciously. "You appeared from nowhere. How did you do that?"

"We...uh..we," Rose stammered, unsure how to explain.

"Is this still part of my dream?"

"Your dream?" asked Donna, suddenly interested. "What else did you dream, Amelia?"

"Well, there was a crack in my wall...I think. It's not there now. And there was a man. A strange man. He appeared in a big blue box."

Rose could hardly breath. He had been here. The Doctor had really been here! "Did the man say what is name was?"

"He just called himself 'the Doctor'." said Amelia, oblivious to the look of absolute joy on Rose's face and the looks of delight on the others.

Rose tried to imagine the Doctor landing here and talking with this girl, but then she realized she didn't now how to picture him as she had no idea what he looked like now. "What did he look like?"

"Well, he had brown hair." _Well, I bet he's disappointed he's not ginger, _Rose thought fondly. "A funny nose, and he was soaking wet."

"Wet?" asked Jack.

Amelia nodded. "He said something about falling all the way into a pool...which he said was in a library...inside the blue box."

Rose nodded. "Go on, what happened after he arrived?"

"He said he was craving an apple, so I gave him one, but he didn't like it. He tried beans, bacon, and a bunch of other stuff and he hated them all. Then he finally settled on fish and custard."

"Sounds like this new regeneration of the Doctor is a picky eater." Jack whispered to Mickey and Martha. They snickered.

"What then?" urged Rose eagerly.

"I showed him the crack in my wall. He said it wasn't a crack in my wall, but a crack in time and space...whatever that means. We heard a voice coming from it. It said, 'Prisoner zero has escaped.' Then he went back to the blue box and he said something about it malfunctioning and that he had to hope to the future and that he would be back in five minutes. So I waited for him, but when I woke up he was still gone. It's only a dream though."

That last sentence was spoken as one who was quoting what an adult has said to a child, but the child does not quite believe it.

"Can you show us where this crack was?" Donna asked and Rose could tell by the look on her face that she was worried about something.

Amelia nodded and led them all into the house. Rose frowned. Something was not right. She couldn't put her finger on it, but something...the layout...something was...just wrong.

Amelia showed them into her room and pointed to the wall opposite the window. "It was right there."

"Well, there certainly isn't anything there now." said Mickey. Jack and Martha nodded in agreement. Rose frowned.

"There is something there." she said and putting her finger to the wall, traced the exact path where the crack had been. "It's faint, but I can definitely see something." She looked back at the others. "Can't you see it?"

They shook their heads. "Rose," asked Jack, gently laying a hand on her shoulder, "you sure you're okay?"

"No." Rose admitted. "I'm worried sick. I don't know what's happening to me, but more importantly I don't know what's happened to the Doctor and that is what frightens me."

"Amelia," said Martha turning to the girl, "are you sure this was a dream?"

Amelia sighed. "I don't think it was. I mean at first I thought it might be, but the shed. The Doctor's blue box smashed it when it landed and it is still broken, but no one will believe me."

Rose smiled at her. "We believe you, Amelia, but I'm afraid we have to go now. It was nice meeting you." She made for the door and the others turned to follow her.

"Wait!" said Amelia. "You still haven't told me why you're here." Rose turned back to face her.

"We're friends of the Doctor, and do me a favor: if you ever see him again, tell him we stopped by. Understand?"

Amelia nodded.

"If the Doctor was erased from time and space," said Mickey once they were all back outside and examining the smashed up shed, "how come Amelia still remembers him? I mean, she's not a companion."

"Not yet. She might be a future companion. It's the only possible explanation." said Donna. "You guys ready to find out where he went next?"

"So he did come back." said Mickey. The house looked the same. The yard looked the same. The only thing that was different was the shed. It wasn't smashed up, but neither was it brand new either. It had obviously been rebuilt several years ago.

"Looks like the Doctor got his timing wrong." commented Jack. "How far in the future are we?"

"Twelves years from where we last were." said Donna.

Mickey whistled. "He told Amelia five minutes. Boy, was he off!" 

"You!" a young woman dressed as a police officer came out of the house and just stared at them in shock. "Twelve years and you don't look any older!"

"Amelia?" Rose queried.

"Yeah, but I go by Amy now."

"Ah!" said Donna. "Well, it's nice to see you again."

"I haven't seen the Doctor since then if that's what you want to know."

"We didn't think so." said Rose.

"Well, come inside. You want some tea?"

"Yes, thanks." said Jack. "So, you're a police woman?"

Amy blushed as she showed them into the kitchen. "No. Actually, I'm...a kissagram."

Rose looked at her. She found it hard to believe that this young woman was the same person as the little girl they had met less than fifteen minutes ago.

"Mind if we take a look around?" asked Donna. She didn't know why, but she suddenly felt that she should do some exploring.

"Sure, go ahead." Donna grabbed Rose's hand and the two began to go over the house. It wasn't anything great. It was a little run done in fact.

"What are we looking for exactly?" asked Rose.

"Traces left by the Doctor." answered Donna. "So...what do you think of Amy? I mean in terms of being companion material?"

Rose shrugged. "Hard to say, we barely now her."

"True, but she does..." Donna froze. "Do you see that?" she pointed to a door. Rose understood why Donna had suddenly gone so still; something wasn't right about it.

"Hold on. Was that there the first time we were here?" Donna shook her head.

"Low level perception filter."

"Should we go inside?"

Rose and Donna exchanged glances before slowly moving to the door and cautiously entering the room. What Rose saw nearly made her heart stop. There, on a table in the middle of the room was a metal, cylindrical object, the tip glowing blue. "The Doctor's sonic screw-driver." they said in unison.

Donna picked it up and handed it to Rose. "Here. I think he'd want you to have it."

"Thanks." Rose clutched it tightly, afraid that she'd drop it and lose it. The sonic screw-driver was one of the Doctor's most treasure possessions and it meant the world to Rose to have it now.

She stiffened. "Donna, do you hear that?"

The red-head nodded. Both women whirled around and came face to face with a silverish eel-like creature with massive teeth. Rose screamed.

The creature began to glow and suddenly it wasn't an "eel" any more. It was a man...a man with his dog, but their faces were all wrong. The man was growling.

The door burst open and Jack rushed in, gun drawn. If he was at all fazed by the sight of the weird man and dog, he didn't show it. The man barked at him.

Just then the ground shook and a voice spoke loud and clear: "Prisoner zero will leave the human residence or the human residence with be incinerated."

_Author's Note: You know what to do!_


	15. Where It All Started To Go Wrong

_Disclaimer: The Doctor is real...and he loves this fanfic._

Chapter 15: Where It All Started To Go Wrong

"So, how come you guys don't look any older?" Amy asked Jack, Martha, and Mickey after Rose and Donna had gone off to explore.

"Because we aren't." Jack said simply. Amy stared at him blankly.

"We time traveled," Martha explained, "we met you only fifteen minutes ago."

"Ah." said Amy, trying to make up her mind if they were joking insane, or actually serious. "I see."

Mickey knew that looks she had on her face. It was the same look Martha's mum had had when they announced their engagement. It had quickly become quite clear that she didn't think Mickey was good enough for her daughter and she kept going on about Tom Milligan, Martha's ex-fiance. Not the best way not start off.

If only...Mickey froze mid thought. That was strange. He suddenly couldn't remember his mother-in-law's name. He thought for several seconds struggling to recall it, but he could not for the life of him think of it. Oh, well. Just as long as Martha didn't find out.

A scream tore through the house, pulling Mickey out of his thoughts. Jack was on his feet and out the door into the hall before anyone else had a chance to even register what had just happened. He burst into the room where the scream had come from, his gun in his hand. There, right in front of him was one of the strangest things he had ever seen. It was a man with his dog, but it was the man who was growling.

Then a voice spoke. "Prisoner Zero will leave the human residence or the human residence will be incinerated."

"That can't be good." said Donna. The strange man growled once more before evaporating and disappearing.

"You two okay?" Jack asked. Rose and Donna nodded and the three of them headed back to the kitchen.

Martha jumped up as soon as she saw them. "Are guys alright? What happened?"

Amy got them some tea while Rose and Donna quickly explained about the eel-like creature that had been hiding in the room that shouldn't be there and how it had changed before their very eyes.

"That must be Prisoner Zero then." said Mickey.

"So, have to get this Prisoner Zero out of my house or it will destroyed?" clarified Amy.

"I think the big picture is a lot bigger than that, Amy," said Rose. "By 'the human residence', I'm guessing they mean the entire planet, not just your house. Am I right?"

Jack and Donna nodded grimly. Mickey groaned. "Here we go again!"

"Prisoner Zero must live the human residence or the human residence will be incinerated." boomed the voice again.

"How long do you think we have?" asked Martha. Jack shrugged.

"Twenty minutes." said Rose.

Jack gave her a questioning look. "What makes you say that?"

"I don't know. Something just tells me we have twenty minutes."

"Well, in that case we better get started." said Donna, heading towards the front door. As soon as they stepped outside, Rose grew suddenly very still. "Rose?" Donna asked. "You alright?"

Rose was too stunned to speak. Something was happening...something weird...something...amazing. It seemed as if she were suddenly seeing two realities at the same time, one superimposed over the other. The first, which was more clear and more focused, was what was happening right here, right now. She could see people staring up at the sky and wondering what was going on. She could see a space ship hovering in the sky.

The second reality was similar, but not nearly as clear, it was sort of faded, ghostly like. Almost everything was the same. She could see the same people and the same ship. But there were two differences. In this reality, she could see Amy. Her hair was undone and she was walking purposefully along the street. There was also the man that was talking to Amy as they both walked.

Rose had never seen him before, but as he drew nearer, not noticing her at all, she got a glimpse of his eyes. There were different that the last time she had seen them, but they were ancient and held a depth of knowledge. They were kind, but they could, if pushed to far, be unforgiving. Only person had eyes like that. Rose knew without a shadow of a doubt that this was the Doctor.

She wanted to shout, to call out his name, to run to him. She wanted hold him in her arms and tell him that she loved him and that she would never, ever leave him again, but she knew that it was impossible. He could never see nor hear her. This second reality she was seeing was merely the shadows, the traces left of what had happened, what should have happened had the Doctor been here, as he was supposed to.

"Rose?" Jack's voice sounded frantic and urgent. "Rose? Are you okay? What's wrong?" Rose felt him shake her. "Rose!"

Still partially entranced by what she was seeing, she turned to look at him. He was there...and he wasn't. "What's happening to me, Jack?" she asked, her voice shaking, for she was starting to freak out and she was realizing that something about herself was not right.

"What?" he demanded. "What is it?"

"I...I'm seeing things..."

"What? What are you seeing, Rose?"

"Guys." Martha pressed. "Now isn't really the time for this. We have to stop the world from being incinerated."

"I know!" said Jack. "You guys go on without us. We'll check you up in a second." Martha nodded. She, Mickey, Donna followed Amy as the latter lead them around the village. Jack placed his hands on Rose's shoulders. "Now. What is it you are seeing?"

"I...I see two realities. One that is and one that was...when the Doctor was here. The second one isn't as clear as the first, and it's like the two are meshed together."

"That's...cool." said Jack, unsure of what else to say.

"Cool...but also very freaky." said Rose. "Something is not right with me, Jack. What is it?"

"I wish I knew." he said. Rose looked at the ground and Jack knew she was trying to hide exactly just how scared she really was. "Come on." he said gently. "We need to rejoin the others."

It was hard to concentrate on where she was walking, seeing double of pretty much everything. After a few trips here and there, she decide it would be best just to let Jack guide her. "Will this every go away?" she muttered.

They soon spotted the others. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a young man in a nurse's uniform. She started. In the first reality he was just taking pictures on his cell, but in the second...he was talking to the Doctor.

Rose broke away from Jack and ran towards the young man. Jack called after her. Then followed just as the others saw what was going on and made to join him.

"Who are you?" Rose asked the young man. "And what are you doing?"

He looked startled, but before he could answer the question, they were joined by the others. He looked relieved to see Amy. "Amy!"

"Hello, Rory."

"Wait. You two know each other?" Rose asked.

Amy rolled her eyes. "It's a small village. Everyone knows each other here. This is Rory. My...friend."

"Boyfriend." Rory corrected.

"Why is this important?" Jack whispered to Rose.

"Because in the second reality, the Doctor is talking to him." she whispered back.

Jack nodded in understanding. "So, Rory, what are you doing...with your phone?"

"Taking pictures."

"Of the people?" asked Donna. "But not of the ship?" she pointed up to the sky. "Why is that?"

"Not people. Just him." Rory pointed and Rose recognized the growling man with the dog. "It's impossible for him to be here."

"Why's that?" asked Mickey.

"Cause he's in a hospital...in a comma." Just as the words left Rory's mouth, Rose heard them echoed..by the Doctor. Suddenly, the second reality, which had seemed pretty much muted until now, burst out in sound and the noise of both realities at once was enough to knock Rose off her feet.

"Rose, you alright?" asked Jack, helping her to her feet.

"I can hear the second reality now." she whispered.

"Good. What's the Doctor saying?" Rose closed her eyes trying to concentrate. Jack hushed the others and told them to be quiet. Her eyes flew open.

"Prisoner Zero...he's a telepathic creature. He changes form based on telepathic links with comatose people. We have to get to the hospital! Quick!"

* * *

She turned and began to follow the second realities Rory and Amy as the went separate ways from the Doctor and hurried to the hospital.

_Author's Note: Review, your queen commands you!_


	16. Saving the WorldAgain!

_Disclaimer: I own Doctor Who...and the moon is made of cheese._

Chapter 16: Saving the World...Again!

As handy as having double sight was, Rose wished she didn't. It was confusing and it scared her. She did not know what was going on. Hearing it was even worse. She wanted to scream. She wondered if she would be like this forever.

"Hang on!" Rory called running after Amy and the others. "Who are you guys? Amy, who are they?"

"Friends of the Doctor," she called looking back over her shoulder. "They're looking for him."

Rory stared after her in disbelief. "But the Doctor isn't real! He was just a character...a character we played as kids!"

Jack raised an eyebrow and looked quizzically at Amy. "Character?"

Amy blushed. "Yeah. Rory and I used to ...play at being the Doctor." She glanced sheepishly at him. "Sounds crazy, right?" Jack shrugged.

"Not really. I guess if I had met the Doctor as a kid I would have done the exact same thing. He's like that: impossible to forget."

"He's not real." repeated Rory, catching up and walking along side of Amy.

Jack scowled at him. "I beg to differ. He is very real. I should know. We've traveled with him. Ask anyone of us. Isn't that right, Martha?" he asked, turning to her for support.

"Oh, yeah." said Martha, coming out of her thoughts. She had been only half listening as she struggled to fight the panic she felt rise up in her. One minute she had been perfectly fine, the next she had realized that she could not remember her own last name. She knew her maiden name was Jones, but she could not remember her married name. It was stupid of her to forget, but she could not for the life of her remember it.

Rose threw open the door to the hospital and rushed inside, the others close behind her. Even though she could hear both realities are once, she found it very quiet and as both realities seemingly had gone deadly silent.

"What is it?" Donna whispered. Rose opened her mouth to reply, but froze when she saw the same thing in both realities at once. It was a woman and her two daughters, but even before they started taking to the other reality Amy and Rory, Rose knew there was something off about them.

"Prisoner Zero." she said simply and calmly. It not only let her friends know that this was the alien, but it let the alien know that she was aware of its true identity.

Jack pulled out his gun and aimed it on Prisoner Zero. The latter didn't even flinch. Instead it suddenly began to change and Amy collapsed to the ground. Rory, Martha, and Mickey ran over to her, while Rose, Jack, and Donna stood their ground before the shape-shifting alien.

"Who is that supposed to be?" asked Jack, staring at what appeared to be a rather ragged looking man before them. Rose felt a lump rise in her throat. Even though she had seen him in the second reality, he had not been so clear before. So this is what the Doctor now looked like. As she looked at him, she felt the second reality fade from her sight and from her hearing. She could now only see the reality that she was living in.

"That," she said quietly, taking in every detail of the "Doctor", "is the Doctor."

"He looks...so different." said Donna.

"What did you expect?" asked Jack, not taking his gun off of Prisoner Zero for a second. "That he just changed one or two things?"

Donna shrugged. "I don't know what I expected."

"Why are you doing this?" Rose asked Prisoner Zero. "Why take the Doctor's form?"

"And what have you done to Amy?" demanded Rory, still kneeling over his unconscious girl friend.

"I need her comatose in order to access her mind." answered the alien in what the others supposed must be the Doctor's new voice.

"Yeah, but why her?" Rory asked, his voice shaking with barely controlled rage. "Why not me? Or one of them? Why does it have to be Amy?"

"Because the mental link takes months to build, and with Amy I've had years."

"You've answered Rory's questions," said Rose, "but you still haven't answered mine. Why the Doctor's form?"

"Because," this came of a child Amy that was holding onto the "Doctor's" hand, " it is this one that Amy connects with the most. It the Doctor who comforted her in her dreams. It was the Doctor who was always there for her in her memory in her darkest hours."

"But how does that help you?" asked Jack. "We know you're not the Doctor. We know you're Prisoner Zero."

"True, but the Atraxy don't." Prisoner Zero said simply, replying once again in the Doctor's voice.

"The Atraxy?" asked Rose.

"The aliens that held him prisoner." Donna guessed.

"Correct." said Prisoner Zero.

"Prisoner Zero will leave the human residence or the human residence will be incinerated." boomed the voice from the space ship above.

"You hear that?" asked Jack. "Leave or this planet will be incinerated. Billions of people are going to die...and you'll die with them."

"Yes, but you see," said Prisoner Zero, "if I let the Atraxy take me, I will be killed. If I stay here... I won't die alone."

"How incredibly selfish of you!" cried Rose in horror. "You want billions of lives to be lost, just so that you won't be the only one who dies?" she shook her head. "That is just wrong!"

"I neither know nor care." replied Prisoner Zero, nonchalantly.

"Well, you're going." said Jack. "One way or another, you are leaving this planet."

"Or what?" asked the alien. "You'll shot me? That would not solve any of your problems, now would it?"

Jack realized Prisoner Zero was right. Shooting him would no good; the Earth would still be incinerated. The only way to save the planet would be to turn Prisoner Zero over to the Atraxy. A slow smile spread across his face as an idea began to form.

"Since you change form based on mental contact with someone, I'm guessing that that someone has to be close by, and that if you were too far away from that someone, you would be forced back to your true form."

"So?" said Prisoner Zero. "What's your point?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Jack saw Rose send him a questioning glance. He briefly glanced down at his vortex manipulator then caught her eye. Comprehension began to dawn on her and a smile rose to her lips.

"Go for it." she mouthed. He nodded. Without warning he threw the gun at Prisoner Zero who looked startled and was for the moment distracted. Then Jack threw himself at the alien and once he got a grip on him pushed a button on his vortex manipulator and human and alien disappeared.

Jack found himself in a large space ship. He realized two things simultaneously. One, a bunch of aliens were staring at him in shock and second that he was holding tightly on to a slim eel-like creature: Prisoner Zero, back in his true form.

Jack was relieved that his theory had been correct. He hated to think what would have happened if he had been wrong and he had to explain to the Atraxy that the "Doctor" was really Prisoner Zero.

"Hi!" he flashed all the astonished aliens a grin. "I'm Captain Jack Harkness and I'm representing planet Earth. I believe you lost this." he gestured to Prisoner Zero, who was violent struggling to get loose, but Jack kept a tight grip on him.

A couple of the Atraxy came out of their shock and grabbing weapons, relived Jack of his charge. "Thanks."

He nodded. "No problem. Just doing my duty. Oh, and before I go, I just want to clear something up: you won't be returning to Earth, right?" The Atraxy nodded. "Good. Bye!"

When Jack got back to the hospital, he found Amy fully conscious and the others were all crowded together and they looked up when he reappeared.

"Did it work?" asked Mickey.

"Sure did!" said Jack.

"Alright!" cheered Mickey. Rose smiled and led the others in enveloping Jack in a group hug. Even Amy and Rory joined in.

"Not bad, Captain!" said Donna. "The Doctor would be proud of you."

"Not just me. All of us." said Jack, smiling at each one in turn.

"So where will you guys go now?" asked Amy, as the small group began to head back to her house.

"Wherever the travel leads us." answered Martha. "We still have to find the Doctor."

"Can I come with you?" Amy asked eagerly.

The others all exchanged looks and Rose knew they were all thinking the same thing. If Donna was right and Amy was a future companion, taking her with them would mess things up... a lot. It was best not to mess with time.

"It would be best if you were to stay here, Amy." answered Donna, gently.

Amy frowned, disappointed. "Why?"

"It's complicated." said Donna. "To be perfectly, honest taking you along would just mess things up. Well, mess time up."

Amy blinked. "Time?"

"Hard to explain." said Rose. "Just trust us, Amy. Believe me when I say that leaving you here...it's for the best.

"Oh, alright." said Amy. She was still disappointed and she did a terrible job showing it. Rose decided to drop the subject.

"Next part of the journey," said Jack, grinning madly, "here we come!"

_Author's Note: Every regeneration of the Doctor is screaming at you to review this chapter!_


	17. Dos Trios

_Disclaimer: Captain Jack can die, Martha married Tom, Donna is shy and submissive...and I own the Doctor._

Chapter 17: Dos Trios

As a child, Rose had once had a nightmare where she was suffocating and ever since then that had her greatest fear. So, needless to say when Rose found herself materializing in deep space without a space suit, she panicked. She was going to die! There was no air in space as everyone knew. It would a slow death, she was sure. She was...she was breathing.

She frowned, puzzled. She turned to see her friends standing next to her; her puzzled expression mirrored on each of their faces. "Why are we in outer space?" asked Mickey, looking around as if he expected to see some planets.

"And how are we breathing?" added Martha. "We should have died the minute we materialized."

"This must be where the TARDIS came," mused Donna, "and it had an atmospheric shell that kept the air in. Even though the TARDIS is gone, the shell must still be in place. Another trace of what once was."

"So, we're being protected by the TARDIS...which _technically_ was never here?" asked Mickey, dubiously.

"It's a bit of a paradox." Donna admitted.

"Like the Time Lord knowledge in your head?" asked Martha.

"When you put it like that...I guess that is a paradox." said Donna.

"What about the Time Lord knowledge in your head?" queried Jack.

"Well, you see it should be killing me, but it isn't because the meta crisis 'technically' never happened, but it is still there in mind head...so, paradox!"

"Guys." said Rose calling their attention. "Does it fell like we are standing on something...something hard?"

Jack tapped his foot and felt something hard under his shoe. Martha and Mickey were jumping up and down, while Donna just walked around. They all looked at each other and then back over at Rose. "Yes!" they all said in unison.

"We better be moving on." said Donna. "Who knows how long it will be before the shell disappears."

"Where are we?" asked Mickey, once they got their bearings. It looked like they were in some sort of ship, an unusually large one at that. There were people everywhere. Some were walking, a few were riding bikes, and others were just sitting on benches. But the one thing that caught Mickey's attention was that they weren't dressed or acting like people on vacation, they...well, they acted like...like they lived on this ship.

"The 29th century," answered Donna, "Starship UK."

"Come again?" asked Rose, shooting her a confused glance.

"A few centuries ago, the Earth became so polluted that everyone took the sky in ships big enough to hold the populations of entire countries. This is Starship UK."

"Come on, let's go explore." suggested Jack, leading the way as the others all made to follow him.

Something caught Martha's eye: a flash of white against the dull background of the ship and the various colors of the people and their clothing. She turned to get a better look. "Hey!" she said, tugging on Rose's sleeve before she could disappear with the others. Isn't that...?" she asked, pointing.

Rose turned to see what she was pointing at. "It is! How did she get here? Hey, Amy!" she called, running over to the young woman who was looking extremely lost. Martha saw that Jack, Mickey, and Donna had already disappeared, so she joined Rose and Amy.

Amy stared at them as if they were from some half forgotten dream. "Do I know you?"

Rose looked startled and she and Martha exchanged glances. "You don't remember?" asked Martha, slowly.

Amy shook her head, but then stopped mid-shake. "I...I don't know. It's...it's like I know you...but at the same time it's like I've never seen you before...either of you."

"The crack in your wall?" Rose prompted. "Prisoner Zero? You don't remember any of that?"

"Of course, I do!" said Amy. "That isn't exactly the sort of thing you'd forget, but that was two years ago. Besides you weren't there. The Doctor took care of that."

"The Doctor?" Rose felt her hopes rising, yet she knew full well that she was just going to be disappointed.

Amy nodded. "He brought me here...but then he just disappeared. I was looking for him...just now."

"Did we jump time lines?" Rose whispered to Martha. The other woman shrugged.

"Maybe the Doctor's disappearance doesn't affect time in a straight forward way." she whispered back.

"There she is." said Amy.

"Who?" asked Rose looking around. Amy pointed to a girl of about ten years of age. She was sitting on a bench crying softly to herself.

"When we first arrived, the Doctor told me that we were observers only, that we weren't going to get involved." Rose rolled her eyes and Martha snorted. That was what always claimed, but he always got involved.

"But then he saw her crying," continued Amy, "he...he wanted to help."

"He does that." Rose said softly. "It's just the way he is. Help. It's the one word that he can never refuse."

Martha nodded in agreement. "Did he find out what she was crying about?"

Amy shook her head. "No, but he said something was wrong."

"What? What was wrong?" Rose asked.

"He said children only cry softly when they can't stop. He said since everyone was just passing by her without checking to see if she was okay, they know why she's crying and they're afraid to take about it. He also pointed out the booths."

"What booths?" asked Martha. Amy gestured to the booths with the plastic smiling men.

"He said that they're clean. He said everything else was dirty, but that no one came within two feet of them. He was planning on investigating. He even put a class of water on the floor and looked out at it. I don't know why, but he obviously thought it was important, but then he disappeared."

"You mean he took off?" asked Rose, but she knew that wasn't what had happened at all.

"No," said Amy, "he vanished...into thin air, but no one else noticed. It was like...like the didn't see it happen, but that's crazy! Surely someone else besides me would have seen it."

"The girl, do you know her name?" asked Martha.

"No." answered Amy.

"Well, then." said Rose. "I think we'd better talk with her."

"Where could they have gone to?" asked Mickey. "I mean they were right behind us...weren't they?" They had been exploring the ship and had just come to one of the lower decks when they realized that Martha and Rose were missing.

"How should I know?" asked Jack, sounded more than a little irritated and if truth be told, afraid. He felt responsible for all of them, especially Rose and if she and Martha were missing...then it was his fault. "I was looking where we were going. It's not my fault if they can't follow simple instructions." he snapped, trying to hide what he was really feeling.

"Great!" said Mickey, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation. "They could be anywhere!"

"Guys." said Donna. She cocked her head to one side, listening. She frowned. "That's odd."

"What?" asked Mickey.

"Listen."

The two men paused in their steps and listened. After a couple seconds silence, Mickey shrugged. "What? I don't hear anything."

"That's just it!" said Donna. "We are on a ship, a moving ship, in the middle of space, but what sound should we be hearing yet we aren't?"

Jack cursed. "The engine! There's no engine."

"Exactly."

"Now, hang out!" objected Mickey. "That's impossible!"

"So, it is, but I'm afraid your friend is right." The three friends whirled around. Jack had his gun out and raised. Standing in front of them was a woman in a red cloak and hood, wearing a mask.

"That won't be necessary." she said, looking at Jack's gun. "I mean you no harm, but I think the three of you had better come with me."

Jack didn't lower the gun. "Why?" he asked suspiciously. "Who are you and what do you want with us?"

"Your help." she replied simply. Then without waiting for their response, she turned and began to walk away. Jack lowered his gun and looked at Donna who shrugged.

"She still didn't tell us who she is." Mickey pointed out, reluctantly to follow anyone who wore a mask.

"I think we should go with her," said Donna, "but be wary. She could be dangerous."

Jack sighed and the three of them turned to follow after the mysterious woman. "This had better be good." he muttered under his breath.

* * *

_Author's Note: Well, the threat of eleven angry Doctor's seemed to work, so this time...review, or you will face the wrath of all the companions the Doctor has ever had!_


	18. Long Live the Queen!

_Disclaimer: If I had a million dollars I would give it all to Stephen Moffet if only he agreed to bring back Rose!_

Chapter 18: Long Live the Queen!

The girl didn't even bother to look up as Rose, Martha, and Amy approached her. Rose knelt in front of her. "You alright?" she asked gently. The girl just shook her head. "I'm Rose. What's your name?"

"Mandy." the girl replied quietly.

Rose gave her a friendly smile. "Nice to met you, Mandy. These are my friends, Martha and Amy." she said introducing the other two women, both of whom smiled back at Mandy. "May I ask what you were crying about?" pressed Rose.

Mandy shot a quick glance at one of the booths with the smiling faces, but just as quickly looked away again. Instead of answering, she got to her feet. "I better be going." she said starting to walk away.

"May we walk with you?" Martha asked. Mandy shrugged.

"If you want to."

The four of them walked in silence for a while, but finally Amy could not stand it any more and she asked Mandy the question that had been plaguing her for sometime."Mandy, do you remember seeing a funny looking man wearing a tweed jacket, a bow tie, and suspenders?"

Mandy shook her head. "No. Why?"

"I thought I saw him talking to you earlier."

"No one like that talked to me. I would remember if that happened."

Amy took a deep breath and it was clear that she was troubled. "You alright?" Rose whispered.

"I don't understand," she whispered back, just so Rose and Martha could hear. "The Doctor was here. I know I saw him talking to Mandy. Then he just vanished! How can something like that happened?" She turned on them before either had a chance to answer. "Am I stuck here? Tell me I'm not stuck here! Oh, he was my ride and I have to be back for tomorrow...well, the day after I left."

"What's going on tomorrow?" asked Martha.

"What? Oh...I'm getting married."

Rose stopped in her tracks. "You're getting married and you ran off with the Doctor? You ran off with another man the day before your wedding? And in our nightie? That's a bit far...even for him." Rose tried to fight the feeling of jealously welling up inside her, but it must have showed on her face, for Martha lay a hand on her arm.

Amy had the decency to blush. "Well, I didn't tell the Doctor...and I was...well...kinda running away from it. I'm not saying that I don't want to get married," she added hurriedly, "well, it's just that...I...don't feel ready. I figured if I went with the Doctor, it would give me time to think things over."

"Who's the groom?" asked Martha, hoping to change topics and distract Amy from noticing Rose's new mood. Not that Martha blamed Rose. In fact, she felt that Rose was perfectly justified in her feelings and Martha felt jealous for her friend's sake. "Rory?"

Amy stared at her in astonishment. "Yes. How did you know that?"

"Long story." said Rose, determined to shake off the sudden feeling of hostility she felt towards Amy. It would do her no good. As they started walking again, Rose suddenly wondered if the Doctor had ever felt jealous of Mickey.

The group stopped as they came across hole right in the middle of their path. Well, actually it was a tent that had a sign saying there was a hole. Mandy shifted uncomfortably at the sight of it. "Um...we should go back and find another way."

The other three didn't budge. If there was one thing that they had learned from traveling with the Doctor (including Amy, even if there was only her test run), it was to be curious of things that seemed out of place.

"I wonder what's under there." said Martha, taking a step forward.

"Uh...a hole?" said Mandy, gesturing to the sign.

"But we're in a space ship." Rose pointed out. "There shouldn't be holes. Otherwise the ship would not be running normally, but it is."

"She's right." said Amy.

Martha began to fiddle with the tent flap. "We shouldn't..." began Mandy as she noticed one of the faces in the booths do a 180 and now it wore a frowning expression.

"Come on, Mandy." said Rose, giving her a reassuring smile. "We're just gonna take a look. What harm is there in that?"

"You really, really shouldn't." said Mandy backing away.

"Oh, come on!" said Amy. "Where's your spirit of adventure?"

Instead of answering, Mandy turned and ran off. No one noticed that the face had turned once again and was now wearing an expression of anger.

Martha finally managed to get the tent open, but it was too late. No sooner had she done so, than the three women were surround by men in black cloaks with hoods over their faces. One of them stepped forward. "Bring them."

Whoever the mysterious masked woman was, she was certainly fast and Jack, Donna, and Mickey had a hard time keeping up with her. She didn't stop until they had run what Jack guessed was half the length of the entire ship.

She led them to nice looking chamber and closed the doors behind them. They all stopped and panted for breath. "Who are you?" Jack repeated, between pants.

The woman turned and removed her mask. "'Ello, mate. I'm Liz. Liz Ten. And you all are...?"

"I'm Captain Jack Harkness and these are my friends..." Jack blinked in surprise. That was odd. He had suddenly forgotten their names.

Mickey and Donna mistook Jack's puzzled pause as a chance to introduce themselves.

"Mickey Smith."

"Donna Noble."

_Mickey and Donna. _Jack repeated silently to himself, but a few seconds later the names were gone again. He couldn't make them stick. He thought of the other two women that had been with them, but he found he could only remember their faces, not their names. He took a deep breath and tried to fight done the feeling of panic that was starting to engulf him.

"There were two other women with us," said Mickey. "We must have gotten separated. Their names are Martha (my wife) and Rose Tyler."

_Martha and Rose._ Jack told himself, but those names didn't stick in his memory anymore than the names of the other two.

"What did you want our help with...Liz Ten?" asked Donna. "What does the Ten stand for anyway?"

"As you have figure out, there is something wrong with this ship. I don't know what, but I plan to find out and I want your help investigating."

"But why do you care?" asked Mickey. "I mean no one else on this ship seems to."

"For one very good reason, mate." replied Liz. "This ship and all the people on it are my responsibility."

"Oh, yeah?" asked Jack. "And why's that?"

Suddenly it dawned on Donna. "Liz Ten! Elizabeth X. Oh, my gosh! You're the..."

Liz smiled. "That's right. I'm the bloody queen, mate. Basically, I rule!" Jack and Mickey just stared at her in shock. "You three have figured out more in one day than I have in the ten years since I assumed the throne."

Suddenly the doors to Liz's chamber were thrown up and several men in black cloaks entered the room and with them were three familiar women. "Martha! Rose!" said Mickey hurrying forward. Martha and Mickey embraced as Donna looked at Amy in surprise.

"What are you doing here, Amy?"

"Uh...do I know you?" asked Amy. Donna raised her eyebrow and was about to ask another question when Rose caught her eye. Her expression told Donna that she would explain later.

"Are these the friends you were talking about?" asked Liz. "I thought you said there were only two of them."

"There were." said Rose. "We...ran into Amy here. She's with us...now."

"What's going on here?" asked Martha. "And who is she?" she asked nodding at Liz.

"That's Queen Elizabeth X." said Mickey. "She wants our help in figuring out what is wrong with the ship."

Rose bit her lip. The last queen that she had met had turned out to not be that friendly. Still, Elizabeth X didn't look anything like Queen Victoria, and Rose could only hope that meant that they weren't similar.

"You may go now." said Liz, dismissing the men with a wave of her hand, but none of them moved. She frowned. "I said you may go." They still remained where they were. "You are dismissed!"

"You will come with us." one of them said. "All of you."

Liz didn't budge. "Excuse me? I am the queen! I will go where I please!" One of the men stepped forward and caught her arm in a tight grip. Others came forward and grabbed Rose and each of her friends.

"You will come with us." repeated the one who held the queen.

"Oh, yeah?" asked Donna. "Where to?"

"The tower."

_Author's Note: This has been bothering me for awhile: is Donna out of character in this story? I know she has Time Lord knowledge in her head, but I'm afraid I've made her too serious in this. Please let me know what you think._


	19. The Lesser of Two Evils

_Disclaimer: If Rose would come back on Doctor Who, my life would be complete!_

Chapter 19: The Lesser of Two Evils

Rose did not know what she had expected the tower to be like, but whatever the word brought to her mind, it was nothing like what the tower actually was. She stared in disappointment at the cold interior and the barren walls. "This is the tower?"

"I know," whispered Donna sensing her disappointment. "The place is a dump. Obviously they haven't heard of spring cleaning." She shook her head ruefully.

That brought a smile to Rose's face. "Well, maybe you can give them a lesson, Donna. I'm sure they'd be more than happy to learn from someone experienced in such matters like yourself."

"Why is it always the woman's job to clean house?" Donna whined. "Why don't the men do the house work?"

Rose laughed. "So, you're saying you make Shawn do the house work?"

Donna's face took on an expression of puzzlement. "Who's Shawn?"

Rose's jaw dropped. For the space of about two seconds, she thought Donna was just joking around and trying to pull her leg, but then she realized that Donna was actually being serious. _Your husband, _she thought and was about to say that out loud when the entrance of a seriously looking man with white hair caught everyone's attention and silenced all conversation.

"Hawthorn." said Liz recognizing him at once. "So, this is where you've been hiding yourself all these years." she glanced around at the robed men who had brought her and the Doctor's companions here to the tower. "Why have you brought us here?"

"We are under orders, your majesty." replied Hawthorn, reclining his head in a respectful bow.

"Orders?" queried Liz. "Orders from whom?"

"Orders from the highest authority, your majesty." answered Hawthorn, bowing again.

"I am the highest authority!" Liz replied, indignantly.

"What on earth is that?" exclaimed Donna pointing to something in the corner. Rose turned to see what looked like a hole in the ground...and coming out of it was what looked like an appendage of some sort.

"Oh, my gosh!" said Rose and Martha simultaneously.

"That," Hawthorne said quietly, "is a star whale."

"A what?" asked Donna, Rose, Martha, Mickey, and Amy in unison, but Jack just stared at him in disbelief.

"But that's impossible!" he objected. "The star whales have been extinct for...well, for a very, very long time."

"Not yet." said Hawthorne. "This is the last of its kind."

"But...but how did it get here?" asked Rose. "And what is it doing?"

"It is what is making this ship move." replied Hawthorne.

The appendage seem to shrink away and Rose heard a muffled groan of pain coming from the star whale. "You're torturing it!" she realized. She stared in Hawthorne in horror.

"Let the star whale go!" said Donna. Although she spoke calmly, Rose clearly heard a deep anger in her voice...an anger she had only known the Doctor to have at his worst moments.

"I cannot." said Hawthorne simply. "I am under orders from the highest authority."

"I am the highest authority!" Liz repeated, snapping at him.

"Indeed, ma'am." said Hawthorne. He gave her such a pointed look that Liz instinctively took a step backwards. "My orders came from you."

If he had slapped her, Liz could not have looked more surprised. "What?" She looked around at the others and noticed the dark looks they were giving her. "I did no such thing!"

"Yes, ma'am. You did." said Hawthorne softly. Rose thought she saw pity in the man's eyes.

"No, I did not! I think I would know if I did."

"Not if you couldn't remember." said Hawthorne.

Dead silence greeted his words. Rose felt the world spinning around her as she was starting to grasp what was going on. Donna reached out and placed a comforting hand on Liz's shoulder and Rose knew that she could relate to the other woman. She too had had her memories erased. Amy's jaw dropped in surprise, while Mickey and Martha looked back and forth between Hawthorne and the queen. Jack's eye's narrowed.

"You erased the memories of your own queen? What kind of people are you?" he demanded.

Hawthorne shook his head sadly. "It was her orders."

"But why?" Liz choked on the words and tears were in her eyes. "Why would I do that?"

Hawthorne gestured to a small screen nearby. "I think it is time you watched the tape, your majesty."

Liz and the small group huddled around the screen. Before it were two buttons. One read "Forget"; the other "Abdicate." Liz stared in confusion at the two buttons for a couple of seconds before turning her attention back to the screen.

It flickered and then an image appeared on the screen and Liz found that she was looking at herself. No one moved, no dared to even breath as they watched and listened. They listened in silence and horror as the Liz on the screen explained about the star whale. They listen in agony of mind as she told them about the terrible choice that Liz would have to make. Then it was over.

No one moved, no one spoke. The awful reality of what they had just learned was enough to crush any thought of speech. No one moved. It was if they believed that if they just stood where they were, they would not have to make a choice. But they had to. The choice had to be made.

One thought made its way into Rose's mind. The Doctor had been here. He had been on Starship UK. Had he made his way to the tower? Had he discovered the awful truth? No sooner had Rose asked herself this, then she knew the answer. Yes. She knew the Doctor well enough to know that he would have realized something was very off about the ship and that we would not have rested until he found out what and why.

He had to have found out about the star whale. He had to have learned about the choice that even now Rose and the others were dreading. He knew. He had to face the choice himself. What choice had he made? Rose knew the answer to that, but she also knew the pain that choice would have cost him. "Oh, Doctor." she whispered silently.

She wished more than anything she had been with him then. She wished that she could have been there to hold his hand, to let him know that he would not have to face this terrible decision by himself. To let him know that no matter what he chose to do, she was there for him.

But she hadn't been there for him. No! She had been in the stupid alternate universe, with her mum, her dad (well, alternate dad), her brother, and...Rose frowned. There had been someone else. Who was she forgetting? She knew that the Doctor had left her behind on Dålig Ulv Stranden for a reason. He had left with...someone, but Rose just could not put her finger on who.

She sighed. It didn't matter, did it? She hadn't been there for him. It wasn't his fault, she was sure of that much. It had been hers, she was absolutely sure. He needed her...and she had not been there for him.

"What should we do?" asked Mickey, finally breaking the silence. It was the question that was on all their minds, but it was the question that they all wish they could avoid.

"What do you think?" said Rose, wiping away a tear. "What do you think the Doctor did?" She looked at her friends and she saw by the looks on their faces that they all knew the answer. Only Amy and Liz looked puzzled.

"We would have saved the people." said Martha quietly. "It wouldn't have been an easy choice and I know it gave him no pleasure, but it was the choice he made."

"Who's the Doctor?" asked Liz.

"He disappeared." said Amy at the same time. "He never came here."

"Your majesty," Hawthorne interrupted gently, "who have to make a decision." Liz sighed. She knew Hawthorne was right. She realized know why she had had her memory erased. She could not have lived with the guilt of know what she had done.

Rose turned away unable to watch. She sighed.

"This isn't right." Amy whispered. Rose nodded.

"I know, but it has to be done." she said gently.

This wasn't right. But what other choice did they have? She thought of everything that Liz on said on the recording hoping for something...anything that would help save the ship without continuing to torment the star whale.

"_Our children screamed."_

"_Then the Doctor say the girl crying."_

"_It is the last of its kind."_

Realization jolted through Rose and as she turned she caught Amy's eye and saw that she had had the same thought. They both turned to Liz and saw that she was about to hit the "Forget" button. "Wait!" they shouted.

Too late. Liz's hand came down on the button. No sooner had she done so then she slumped to the ground unconscious. Martha ran to her side. "What happened?"

"She'll be alright." Hawthorne reassured her. "But when she wakes, up she won't remember a thing...including all of you." he gestured to the small group. "Which puts in a bit of a predicament. As you all still remember the truth and I am under orders to let no one know and I cannot have you telling the queen..." he broke off and it was evident that what he was thinking was not at all pleasant. "Take them."

The other robed men stepped forward, but Jack had his gun out before they could lay hands on him or his friends. One of the men was just as fast and had out a gun and before anyone had a chance to realize what was happening, he shot Jack...straight through the heart.

Amy screamed as Jack's lifeless body fell to the ground. As the robed men grabbed hold of them, Martha found herself staring at Jack, willing him to get up. He would be alright. After all, he never stayed dead for long.

But he didn't move. He just lay there. Then she remembered. Jack had only been immortal because of Rose, but that was only because of the Doctor. That past was gone. As Martha felt herself being led away from the tower. She found herself praying, hoping that like the Time Lord knowledge in Donna's head, Jack's immortality would still exist.

"Take them to the dungeons." ordered Hawthorne. "I'll deal with them later."

_Author's Note: I know this is a day late, and I am so sorry for that! Unfortunately, school work is starting to pile up and I may not be able to update as often as I have been. But no fear! I fully intend to finish this story, so keep reading! Oh, and review!_


	20. All in This Together

_Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who. There! I said it! You happy now!_

Chapter 20: All in This Together

"We're going to die. Aren't we?" Amy asked quietly. The others would not meet her gaze, confirming her worst fears. "Great!" she throwing her hands up in the air. "My first adventure and I am going to die!"

"You mean _we_ are going to die." Mickey corrected. Amy glared at him.

"You are you guys anyway? What are you doing here and what on earth is going on?" she demanded. "And what have you done with the Doctor?"

"We haven't done anything to him, Amy." said Rose. She tried to keep her voice calm, but she could not help but feel insulted by the implication that she of all people would do anything to the Doctor.

"Then where he is?" Amy asked, sounded utterly unconvinced.

"We don't know." said Donna, knowing full well that they just couldn't go around telling people, even Amy, that the Doctor had been erased from time and space.

Martha shifted uncomfortably. The cell that they had been thrown was small and rather cramped. It had been built to hold two, but there five of them in there. They could barely move, let alone get up and walk around.

"You still haven't answered my other questions." Amy pointed out, not even trying to hide her annoyance. "Who are you people?"

"We're friends of the Doctor." said Donna. "I'm Donna Noble. That's Mickey Smith, his wife Martha, and Rose Tyler."

"And the guy who was shot?" asked Amy quietly.

"Jack." said Rose softly. "Captain Jack Harkness."

"And I'm..."

"Amelia Pond." said Mickey. "We know."

Amy frowned at him. "Have you been stalking me or something?"

Mickey snorted. "No."

"Then how do you know.."

"It's a long story, Amy," said Donna, "but you are just going to have to trust us."

"Trust you?" Amy blurted out angrily. "Trust you? I don't even know you! All I know is that ever since these two showed up," her she gestured at Martha and Rose, "things have gotten weirder and weirder! Not to mention the fact they showed up just after the Doctor vanished. Coincidence? I don't think so! I mean you guys could have killed him for all I know!"

Dead silence followed her words and as the eyes of her companions all turned on her, Amy knew that she had gone too far. Sure, she did not know who they were, but they certainly were not murderers. They had been there for her when she needed someone to lean on. She was just afraid and that fear had turn to irrational anger. She regretted the words as soon as they were out of her mouth, but there was no way she could take them back, no matter how much she wished to.

Mickey and Martha just stared at her in shock, as if they could not quite comprehend that she had just had the audacity to accuse them of murdering one of their dearest friends. Donna bit her lip, attempting to control the anger she felt at the accusation, but it was Rose that Amy was suddenly afraid of. The blond looked as if she were about to snap at any moment.

"How dare you." she said, her voice look and dangerous. "What do you know about the Doctor? You said this was your first trip with him. What do you know about us? Nothing! If you did, you would know without a doubt in your mind that none of us would ever do anything to hurt him! Let alone kill him. We...I..." Rose nearly broke down crying. "The Doctor was my whole world and I honestly do not know what I will do if anything happens to him."

Donna reached over and came Rose a reassuring squeeze. "I'm sure nothing will, Rose. The Doctor is smart and he can look after himself. There is nothing to worry about."

Rose nodded, too choked up to speak. Donna looked over at Amy, with a look that clearly said that she owned them all an apology...especially Rose.

"I'm sorry." Amy said sincerely. "I...I'm just scared. I have no idea what's going to happen and...I just wish the Doctor was here."

"We all do." Rose said softly. She smiled faintly at Amy. "I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have spoken to you like that."

"At least you had reason to." said Amy. "I had no right to say what I did. I mean, all you guys have ever done since I've met you is look out of each other and me. You haven't given me a reason not to trust you. So, I'm sorry for what I said."

"It's okay, Amy." said Martha. "We all forgive you." The others all nodded their heads in agreement.

Amy smiled, in gratitude. "So, how do you all know the Doctor? How did you guys met him?"

"Long story." said Donna.

Amy shrugged. "What else have we got to do?"

"Good point." said Rose. "I was working in a shop. One day I went down to the basement and there were these shop window dummies and they just started moving. They backed me up against the wall. Then there he was. He took my hand and told me to run. That's how it all started for me."

"And Rose and I were dating at the time," added Mickey, "so I met him through her."

"I was getting married." said Donna. "I was going down the aisle, next thing I know I'm in the TARDIS." she chuckled. "I will never forget the look on his face!"

"I was working in a hospital. He was there undercover as a patient." Martha smiled as she fondly remembered that time. "We ended getting stuck on the moon."

No one spoke for several seconds as they all thought back to those first moments. They all thought of how they had gotten to know him and how special he had become to each of them. To Martha, Mickey, and Donna he had become the greatest friend they would ever know. To Rose, he had become the ultimate love of her life...and she would probably never get a chance to tell him how much he meant to her.

Amy looked at each of them in turn and each of their faces she could read their great love and respect for the Doctor. She smiled. "He must be very special."

"Yeah," said Rose softly, a beautiful smile lighting up her face, "he is."

He was alive again, he knew that much. He had died and come back enough times to know that. No, he was alive. His headache was enough proof of that, not to mean the blinding light that greeted him when he opened his eyes.

He groaned and sat up, rubbing his eyes. "How long was I dead this time?" he wondered aloud. He quickly looked around to make sure no one had heard him. The room where his body had dumped was empty, except for himself. He was, for the moment, alone.

Jack knew better than to expect that it would be that way for lone. Some one was bound to come along. It was best to get out of there while he still could. He walked over to the door and pressed his ear against it. 

Nothing. It didn't sound like there was anyone nearby. He gently opened the door and poked his head out. There was no one around. He bit his lip, unsure which way to go.

He had to find the others. He just wasn't sure where exactly in the ship he was, and neither did he have any clue as how to find the dungeons, which is where he had assumed they had been taken.

What should he do? Jack had no intention of abandoning them, but the more he snuck around the ship trying to find them, the more likely he'd be caught and then what good would he be to his friends?

"Lost?" He spun around and instinctively grabbed for his gun...which wasn't there. Apparently, he had been wrong and there was someone in the room, hiding in the shadows. A figure stepped forward and Jack realized it was a woman.

Under normal circumstances, Jack would have said hello and started flirting shamelessly with her, but now he was not in the mood. He scowled at her. "You're lucky you know." she said. "Normally they would just throw the deceased out into space."

Jack stared at her blankly, until it dawned on him what she was implying. "How did you...who are you?"

"I'm a friend...of the Doctor."

Jack's eyes widened in surprise at the mention of the Doctor's name. "Do you know where he is? Can you help me find him?"

"Not now. First, I need to help you find your friends."

Jack followed her out of the room as she lead him through the ship. "What's your name?" he asked as they walked down a staircase.

"Later." she replied. She opened and door and shoved him through it. Jack found that he was in what looked a jail with only one cell, one cell that held five huddled figures who all looked up as he entered. Once again Jack wished he could remember their names.

"Jack?" the blond stared at him in surprise. "You're alive!"

"Of course, I am!" said Jack.

"But how?" asked the younger red head looking at him as if he were a ghost.

"I'm virtually immortal." he said, giving her a reassuring grin. Then he noticed the looks on the other's faces. "Or have you forgotten?"

"Jack," said the dark skinned woman, "you were shot over a month ago."

_Author's Note: Sorry for the lateness of this chapter! I hope it won't happen again. Review, people, review!_


	21. Time Out of Whack

_Disclaimer: How many times do I have to say it?_

Chapter 21: Time Out of Whack

Breaking the others out of jail was not at all as difficult as Jack had thought it would be. The cell bars, he discovered, where rather weak and the lock was easy to pick. _It's as if they want us to escape, _he thought warily.

Donna turned to thank him, when she caught sight of the woman standing in the door way behind him. Her eyes widened in shock. "River? River Song!"

River didn't even look surprised that Donna knew her, though she clearly didn't recognize her by the look on her face."You must be a friend of the Doctor. He and his friends are the only ones I met in the wrong order."

Donna nodded. "Yeah." she said, but there was something in her tone that made Rose frown. She looked over at her friend and shot her a questioning glance.

Donna saw the look and mouthed the words "I'll explain later." Rose nodded. She turned to River. "So, River how well do you know the Doctor and do you know what's happened to him?"

"Oh, I know him _very_ well." said River and she laughed. It was a rather flirtatious sort of laugh and one that suggested that to her at least the Doctor more than _jus_t her friend. Rose felt a twinge of jealously and Donna and Martha felt jealous for her. "Yet," River added a little sadly, "he doesn't know me that well...at least not yet. As for what's happened to him...yes, I do know."

"Really? What?" asked the others all at once.

"He flew the Pandorica into the heart of the exploding TARDIS."

A moment's stunned silence greeted her words and then everyone started talking at once.

"What's the Pandorica?" asked Mickey.

"Wait a minute...the TARDIS was exploding!" exclaimed Jack.

"Did it have anything to do with that crack on my wall?" asked Amy.

"What did he do that for?" asked Donna.

"When was this?" asked Martha.

"Is he...dead?" asked Rose, fighting to control the tears that threatened to burst forth. She did not know who this women was, but she was absolutely certain that she did not want to cry in front of her.

River waved a hand to silence them. "First off, one question at a time. Second, introductions. You all know my name already and the only people I know are Jack and Amy."

"Mickey Smith."

"Martha...I'm Mickey's wife."

"Donna Noble."

"Rose Tyler."

River eyed Rose and the younger woman wasn't sure she liked the way River was looking at her. "I see." she said simply.

"Now, as for your questions. Mickey asked what the Pandorica is." River paused for a second, as if she were trying to figure out how to answer.

"The Pandorica is a fairy tale, or so the Doctor believed. It was a metal square box, big enough to hold one person. It was designed to so that whatever was put inside it would not get out, unless it was opened from the outside. There was a legend that said that it contained the most dangerous monster of all time."

"What was it?" asked Mickey.

"The monster? Nothing...as it turned out. The Pandorica was a trap...a trap for the Doctor. It was designed by a number of the Doctor's worst enemies. The Daleks, Cybermen, Sontarans, the Nestene, and many others had all come together and formed an alliance...an alliance against the Doctor. Their plan was to lock the Doctor inside the Pandorica...and keep him there forever."

"But why?" asked Jack. "I mean, I know they all hate the Doctor, but wouldn't have been easier for them to just kill him?"

River sighed. "They were afraid that wasn't enough. You see, there were these...cracks-"

"Like the one in my room." Amy interrupted and River nodded.

"Exactly like the one in your room." said River. "They...well they were cracks in time and there was this light coming from them. Anything that touched it got erased from time. It was like they never had existed."

A hushed silence fell on the group as everyone seemed to understand where River was heading. Rose felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. "Is that what happened to the Doctor?" she asked at last.

"Not quite." said River. "As I was saying these cracks were crack in time and the universe was falling about. It was slowly being destroyed over time. The Doctor discovered that they were caused by an exploding TARDIS."

"And the Doctor's enemies thought that because there is only one TARDIS left that the Doctor was responsible." Martha guessed. River nodded. "So they put him in the Pandorica to punish him? What good would that do?"

"No, not to punish him. To stop him." River corrected. "They figured it hadn't happened yet and that if they stopped him the universe would be safe."

"Am I the only one who finds that ironic?" asked Mickey. "I mean only a few years ago the Daleks were the ones trying to destroy the whole of reality and now they're trying to stop the Doctor from doing the same? How messed up is that!"

"But what happened?" asked Rose anxiously. "Is he still trapped in the Pandorica? And if he is, how did that erase him from time?"

"It's a paradox really." River admitted. "Rory got him out."

"Rory?" asked Amy incredulously. "Rory Williams? My fiance?"

River nodded. "The same. He used the Doctor's sonic screw driver. He was given it by the Doctor...well, a future Doctor. Who got out of the Pandorica because Rory used the screw driver."

"Paradox." Jack agreed.

"Unfortunately, the universe was still being destroyed." said River. "The Doctor figured that the only way to stop it would be to create Big Bang 2, which would reverse the effects and the only way to do that was to fly the Pandorica into the heart of the exploding TARDIS."

"And the Doctor ended up on the wrong side." Donna guessed. "Getting himself erased from time."

River nodded.

"So, he's stuck." said Martha in horror.

"Uh, not quite." said River. "Amy...a future Amy was able to bring him back by remembering him."

"So what's the problem?" asked Jack. "If the Doctor is back, everything's fine...right?"

"I wish." said River. "Someho,w even though the Doctor is back and his future is on the right course, his past is still wrong. The Doctor exists, but seems as if he never did...until the moment he showed up at Amy and Rory's wedding."

Rose bit her lip. This was a lot of information to take in. She had always expected that there wasn't a simple explanation for the Doctor's sudden disappearance and the rearrangement of time, but this was a complicated mess! "So, we need to fix the Doctor's past. But how?" What she didn't ask, was what would happen if they did? She was only back in this universe because the past was changed. Once that was fixed, would she end up back in the alternate universe with John Smith? And what about Donna? Would she go back to remembering nothing about the Doctor?

Rose caught her eye and she could tell by the troubled look on Donna's face that the same thought was going through her mind.

River sighed. "I wish I knew. The only person who could figure it out is the Doctor, but it since he is gone at this time, that is out of the question."

"Wait a minute!" said Mickey. "You said in that in her future Amy brings the Doctor back, right? So why don't we just locate the future Doctor to help us?"

Donna looked dubious. "That's not a good idea. I mean, mixing up time lines? It's never a good thing. Especially if we bring Amy with us. She could run into her future self and that would be a paradox."

"Surely not all paradoxes are bad." put in Amy.

"Having the same person from two different points in time meet is." said Rose, thinking of when that had happened when her dad had thrust herself as a baby at her. That was what had given the Reapers enough power to get inside the church and the Doctor had gotten killed because of it.

"But we have no other options." said Mickey. "River is right: the Doctor is the only person who could figure all this out. If you are certain that we should avoid paradoxes, then we could always leave Amy behind."

"Hey!" said Amy, glaring at him.

"What I meant," he added quickly, "is take her back to her own time and then go into the future to try and find the Doctor. That way there won't be two Amys."

"Oh, please, don't!" pleaded Amy.

Rose sympathized with her. She no longer felt jealous, now that she knew that Amy did end up marrying Rory. She knew it wouldn't be easy leaving Amy behind, but she also saw the necessity of it.

"I'm sorry, Amy," said Donna, "but Mickey is right." She looked over at River. "You coming?"

River shook her head. "It's my past you'll be dealing with."

Donna nodded. "Understood." She looked at her friends. "Well, let's find the Doctor, shall we?"

_Author's Note: Yes, I know it has been over 2 months since I updated! I am so sorry for the delay and I hope it hasn't put you off of continuing to read this. This chapters was mostly dialogue, but hopefully the next few chapters will have more action. Oh, and by the way, since I started this before Series 6 started, this story is going to be completely AU from that. So, those of you who haven't seen any of Series 6 yet need not worry! You can keep reading this!_


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